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The United Nations, UN, United States of America and the United Kingdom have all reacted to the military coup in Zimbabwe.

The military on Wednesday overthrew 93-year-old President Robert Mugabe  after seizing the National Radio Station on Tuesday.

Mugabe has been in charge of the country for 37 years.

The UN has consequently issued a security advisory, instructing its personnel to work from home.

Some schools were closed and some students failed to sit for their final examinations, including at the University of Zimbabwe.

Also, the UK foreign and commonwealth office has updated its travel advice to British nationals in Zimbabwe.

It reads in part, “Due to the uncertain political situation in Harare, including reports of unusual military activity, we recommend British nationals currently in Harare to remain safely at home or in their accommodation until the situation becomes clearer. Please continue to monitor our travel advice and embassy social media accounts for updates.

“You should avoid political activity, or activities that could be considered political, including political discussions in public places and criticism of the president. You should avoid all demonstrations and rallies. The authorities have sometimes used force to suppress demonstrations.”

On its part, the US revealed that its embassy in Harare, “will be minimally staffed and closed to the public on November 15. Embassy personnel will continue to monitor the situation closely.”

It also advised US citizens in Zimbabwe, “to shelter in place until further notice.

“Even demonstrations intended to be peaceful can turn confrontational and escalate into violence. Avoid areas where demonstrations are taking place and exercise caution when in the vicinity of any large gatherings, protests, or demonstrations.”

When Peter Jackson directed the first Lord Of The Rings trilogy, released between 2001 and 2003, the combined cost of the three movies was $281 million.

A little over a decade later, when Jackson returned to direct The Hobbit trilogy, the combined cost before any promotion or advertising was $675 million.

Amazon Studios today secured the rights - and just the rights, mind you - to the The Lord Of The Rings, for a wallet-busting $250 million, according to Deadline.

That is before the company have spent a single penny on any development, talent, production, or any advertising. The budget is estimated to be around $150 million per season, and Amazon have signed on for a multi-season contract, as well as the rights to a potential spin-off series.

Sharon Tal Yguado, the Head of Scripted Series at Amazon Studios, had the following to say about the property:

"The Lord of the Rings is a cultural phenomenon that has captured the imagination of generations of fans through literature and the big screen. We are honored to be working with the Tolkien Estate and Trust, HarperCollins and New Line on this exciting collaboration for television and are thrilled to be taking The Lord of the Rings fans on a new epic journey in Middle Earth."

It is clear that there is going to be a major rush to fill the gap left after Game Of Thrones ends in 2019, and both HBO and Netflix were part of the bidding war with Amazon to become the lord of the rights.

Amazon are reportedly intending to produce a series which will take place before the events of The Lord Of The Rings, but are not told in the story of The Hobbit.

The Lord Of The Rings trilogy went on to make $2.91 billion, while The Hobbit trilogy went on to make $2.93 billion, so there is clearly a lot of money to be made from this franchise, and according to The New York Times, HBO banks around a billion dollars a year from Game Of Thrones.

Gotta spend money to make money, we guess.

President Robert Mugabe and his wife, Grace, arrived at the headquarters of the governing ZANU-PF party last week during a rally to back Mrs. Mugabe as the next vice president. | Jekesai Njikizana/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images
Zimbabwe’s military said early Wednesday, November 15, 2017 that it had taken custody of President Robert Mugabe, the world’s oldest head of state and one of Africa’s longest-serving leaders, in what increasingly appeared to be a military takeover in the southern African nation.

After apparently seizing the state broadcaster, ZBC, two uniformed officers said in a short predawn announcement that “the situation in our country has moved to another level.” While denying that the military had seized power, they said that Mr. Mugabe and his family “are safe and sound, and their security is guaranteed.”

“We are only targeting criminals around him who are committing crimes that are causing social and economic suffering in the country in order to bring them to justice,” said the main speaker, who was identified as Maj. Gen. S. B. Moyo, the army’s chief of staff.

General Moyo — who was not widely known to the public but who was considered close to the commander of the Zimbabwe Defense Forces, Gen. Constantine Chiwenga — warned that “any provocation will be met with an appropriate response.”

Around 6 a.m. on Wednesday, taxis were running on the main roads leading to central Harare and people seemed to be making their way to work. Some soldiers could be seen on the main roads but were not stopping commuters.

After the short announcement, commercials on farming and corn seeds appeared on the state broadcaster. There was no further clarification of the whereabouts or status of Mr. Mugabe, 93, who is the only leader his nation has known since independence in 1980.

Asked in a brief telephone interview about reports of a possible coup, the country’s information minister, Simon Khaya Moyo, said, “What can I say? I don’t know about that.” He did not elaborate.

The television announcement came after a long night of rumors and sketchy reports in Harare that a coup might be underway. The day before, in a remarkable act of defiance, General Chiwenga had warned that “when it comes to matters of protecting our revolution, the military will not hesitate to step in.”

General Chiwenga was considered close to Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa, whom Mr. Mugabe summarily expelled from the government and the governing ZANU-PF party last week. The move was widely seen as clearing the path for Mr. Mugabe’s wife, Grace, 52, who had been amassing growing political power in the past two years as her aging husband’s health declined visibly.

Since his removal, the whereabouts of Mr. Mnangagwa, who like Mr. Mugabe was a veteran of the country’s struggle for independence, has been shrouded in mystery.

Zimbabwe's military has placed President Robert Mugabe under house arrest in the capital Harare, South African President Jacob Zuma says.

Mr Mugabe told Mr Zuma in a phone call that he was fine, the South African leader's office said.

Troops are patrolling the capital, Harare, after they seized state TV and said they were targeting "criminals".

The move may be a bid to replace Mr Mugabe with his sacked deputy, Emmerson Mnangagwa, BBC correspondents say.

Mr Mnangagwa's dismissal last week left Mr Mugabe's wife Grace as the president's likely successor.

Mr Mugabe, 93, has dominated the country's political scene since it gained independence from the UK in 1980.

How the drama unfolded
After days of tension and rumour, soldiers seized the state broadcaster ZBC late on Tuesday.

A Zimbabwean army officer, Major General Sibusiso Moyo, went on air and denied there was a coup, but said the military was targeting "criminals" around President Mugabe.

Maj Gen Moyo also said Mr Mugabe and his family were "safe and sound and their security is guaranteed". It is not clear who is leading the military action.

Since then military vehicles have been out on the streets of Harare, while gunfire has been heard from northern suburbs where Mr Mugabe and a number of government officials live.

In a statement, Mr Zuma's office said: "President Zuma spoke to President Robert Mugabe earlier today who indicated that he was confined to his home but said that he was fine."

How we got here
At heart is a power struggle over who succeeds Mr Mugabe. The rivalry between his wife Grace and Mr Mnangagwa has split the governing Zanu-PF.

Following a call from Mrs Mugabe, Mr Mnangagwa was removed from the vice-presidency earlier this month.

But on Monday, army chief Gen Constantino Chiwenga said the army was prepared to act to end purges within Zanu-PF.

Gen Chiwenga is a close ally of Mr Mnangagwa and both are veterans of the 1970s war which ended white minority rule.

One of the leading members of the Zanu-PF faction led by Grace Mugabe, Finance Minister Ignatius Chombo, is being detained, a government source told Reuters.

An extraordinary gamble
By Andrew Harding, BBC Southern Africa correspondent

A quick show of military force, a few arrests... and then what?

These are, of course, unpredictable times for Zimbabwe and yet there is a chance that the army's extraordinary overnight gamble will pay off, and that President Robert Mugabe, humiliated and powerless, will nonetheless be allowed to retire with at least the pretence of dignity.

It is important to remember that Mr Mugabe is not being challenged by the Western governments he has warned against for decades, or by Zimbabwe's political opposition, or by a mass uprising against economic hardship.

This is, fundamentally, an internal power struggle within Zanu-PF and whoever emerges victorious can expect a newly purged party to fall obediently into line.

Mr Mugabe's mistake, at 93, was to assume he was still powerful enough to build a dynasty to back his wife, Grace, to succeed him.

Instead, his once loyal deputy, Emerson Mnangagwa, may be poised to take control. If so, many foreign governments are likely to give him the benefit of the doubt and hope he can rescue Zimbabwe from years of misrule.

Is this a coup?
In his statement Maj Gen Moyo said "this is not a military takeover of government".

But despite the Zimbabwean military's denials, to many observers their actions bore many of the hallmarks of a coup.
There has been no direct comment from President Mugabe, nor his wife Grace, whose whereabouts are unclear.

Key regional blocs the African Union (AU) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) do not look favourably on unconstitutional changes of power, which might explain the Zimbabwean military's wording.

How the news is being seen
In Harare, some were delighted. "We are going to have a good life, we are looking forward to Christmas, because of what has happened," one woman told BBC News.

"I want to thank the general for removing this tyrant," said a man. "He was ruling the country as if it belonged to his family."

The leader of the war veterans, Chris Mutsvangwa, told Reuters: "It's the end of a very painful and sad chapter in the history of a young nation, in which a dictator, as he became old, surrendered his court to a gang of thieves around his wife."

Both the UK Foreign Office and US embassy in Harare has advised its citizens to remain indoors until the situation becomes clearer.

China, Zimbabwe's biggest trading partner, says it is closely watching the situation and hopes that the relevant parties can properly handle their internal affairs.

STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI

The wait for the space saga’s highly anticipated Episode VIII will soon be over. The Last Jedi takes a deeper dive into Rey’s life and her relationship with Luke Skywalker. “She’s greeted not so warmly by Luke,” says Daisy Ridley. “It will take a little bit of work and a little bit of trust, then it becomes a wonderul, emotional story.” In theaters Dec. 15.

I, TONYA

Margot Robbie takes on the role of infamous ’90s figure skater, Tonya Harding, who was embroiled in scandal after a hit man hired by her ex attacked her rival Nancy Kerrigan. “The coolest thing about the movie is that we see everyone has their own version of the truth,” says Robbie. In theaters Dec. 8.

ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD

The film, starring Michelle Williams and Mark Wahlberg, has been making headlines after it was announced director Ridley Scott replaced Kevin Spacey who is facing mounting allegations of sexual harassment, with Christopher Plummer for the role of J. Paul Getty. The drama tells the story of the 1973 kidnapping of oil heir John Paul Getty III. In theaters Dec. 22.

THE POST

Hollywood’s dream team — director Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep — come together to tell the story of how Katherine Graham (Streep), the first female publisher of The Washington Post, and editor Ben Bradlee (Hanks) worked together to unveil the Pentago Papers in 1971. In theaters Dec. 22.

DOWNSIZING

Matt Damon takes on his smallest role yet in this satire, directed by Alexander Payne and also starring Jason Sudeikis. Damon’s character and his wife (Kristen Wiig) decide whether or not to shrink themselves to live a more luxurious lifestyle. In theaters Dec. 22.

THE GREATEST SHOWMAN

Hugh Jackman says playing P.T. Barnum, the founder of Barnum & Bailey Circus, was a dream role. “The guy could turn lemons into lemonade,” Jackman says of Barnum. “It’s so much fun to play a guy with that kind of bravado.” In theaters Dec. 20.

PITCH PERFECT 3

Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Anna Camp, Hailee Steinfeld and Brittany Snow return for the a cappella comedy’s third installment. In theaters Dec. 22.

FERDINAND

An adaptation of the classic children’s book about a gentle bull (voiced by John Cena) who would rather smell the flowers than fight aims to warm hearts big and small. In theaters Dec. 15.

THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI

When the police make no headway in solving the rape and murder of her daughter, Mildred Hayes (Frances McDormand) rents three billboards on a back road and plasters them with blunt questions about the neglected case. The film also stars Woody Harrelson as the police chief and Sam Rockwell as his deputy. Harrelson says working with McDormand, who is earing Oscar buzz for her role, is like “going into the ring with the greatest prize fighter in the world and she doesn’t break your nose and instead you have a great time and get to dance.” In theaters Nov. 10.

THE DARKEST HOUR

Gary Oldman has become an awards front-runner as Winston Churchill, fighting pressure to seek peace with Nazi Germany or risk Britain’s annihilation early in WWII. In theaters Nov. 22.

The Super Eagles of Nigeria has just defeated Argentina in an International Friendly played at the Krasnodar Stadium in Russia.

Ever Banega opened the scoreline in the 27th minute with a magnificent freekick, and Sergio Aguero topped it up with a goal, making the scoreline 2-0 at the 43rd minute.

Kelechi Iheanacho also scored a fine freekick at the 44th minute, making the scoreline 2 – 1 in Favor of Argentina during Half Time.

The Super eagle came back with a bang with Alex Iwobi scoring at the 52nd, and Brian Idowu immediately topped it to 3 – 1 at the 54th minute…. Alex Iwobi wasted no time in Scoring his second goal at the 73rd minute.

Argentina had a Possession of 66%, 15 shots, 4 on Target, Had 9 Fouls, and 2 offsides, not forgetting the corners, 10.

Nigeria on the other hand had 34% possession, 7 shots, 5 on target, 12 fouls, 3 offsides and 3 corners.

The Intelligence Response Team (IRT) under the watch of Abba Kyari at the weekend, lost one of its gallant officers to the cold hands of death.

The gallant officer was one of the leading ‘field detectives’ who tracked and demystified Lagos based billionaire kidnapper, Chukwudumeme Onwuadike aka Evans.

It was in the middle of a similar arrest that the suspect pumped bullets into Lanre’s stomach while his colleague got shot in the hand.

Unperturbed by the surprise attack, both the late Sergeant and others chased after the kidnappers and killed the man that fired the killer shots.

The bullets lodged in their bodies were later extracted with medical teams on ground confirming that the injured Policemen were responding to treatment.

But tragedy struck a few days later. It was discovered that Sergeant Lanre who had opened his eyes and exchanged pleasantries with his colleagues, later gave up the ghost.

“It is really sad and painful altogether. We have not been able to tell his wife and other family members yet. This is the risk of the job we are talking about; we put our lives on line for others, yet when it is time for promotion, one thing or the other will happen and the list will be kept in view.

“Look at this now, Sergeant Lanre was one of the men that put his life on the line to arrest Evans and now he is dead. We don’t even know how to break the news to his wife and family. It is painful,” one of his colleagues said at the weekend.

The commander of IRT, Kyari, is said to be in deep pain over Lanre’s death.

Delectable Ghanaian actress, Nadia Buari who has, ever since the birth of her twin daughters, been keeping their identity and that of their father’s private, shared these new lovely new photos of herself bonding with the twins at an apartment garden.

Nadia welcomed her twins in 2015 and has succeeded in keeping their faces from the internet. A photo she shared recently is the closest we’ve seen of one the twins’ face.

This is a Fraud Alert from Adesua Etomi’s Hubby, Banky W.

There are rumours making grounds that N35,000 tickets are on sale for every prospective guest for the most anticipated wedding of the yeat between Singer Banky W and Actress Adesua Etomi.

The Groom himself, Banky W has however debunked the rumours via his Twitter handle while the wishing whoever will fall for the scam, Good Luck.

Africa’s richest man and the Chairman of Dangote Industries Limited, Alhaji Aliko Dangote has revealed that Nigerian economy is losing an estimated N20 billion on a daily basis to the bad roads around Apapa, Lagos.
Dangote disclosed this fact during a chat with the journalists in Lagos on Tuesday, June 2017. He categorically stated that the country is losing about N140 billion weekly to traffic gridlock on all roads linking the city.

“The economy loses more than N20 billion daily. It affects businesses across the country. All our operations in the hinterland in Ilorin and Kano are operating at 40 percent capacity."

Africa’s richest man and the Chairman of Dangote Industries Limited, Alhaji Aliko Dangote has revealed that Nigerian economy is losing an estimated N20 billion on a daily basis to the bad roads around Apapa, Lagos.
Dangote disclosed this fact during a chat with the journalists in Lagos on Tuesday, June 2017. He categorically stated that the country is losing about N140 billion weekly to traffic gridlock on all roads linking the city.

“The economy loses more than N20 billion daily. It affects businesses across the country. All our operations in the hinterland in Ilorin and Kano are operating at 40 percent capacity."

Bad roads at the entrance of Apapa Wharf seaport, which also house Dangote Flour Mills.
» more Bad roads at the entrance of Apapa Wharf seaport, which also house Dangote Flour Mills.  (New Telegraph NG)
Apapa is a commercial city of Lagos with the country’s largest and busiest seaports (Tin-Can Island and Wharf Ports) and a site of many big manufacturing conglomerates in Nigeria.

“Today, there is no road linking the South-West to the North. You have to go all the way through Ajaokuta, Obajana, Lokoja and you have to go through the uncompleted road Obasanjo started 13 years ago,” Mr Dangote stated.

The Nigerian businessman also used the occasion to address its commitment towards addressing the problem through the corporate social responsibility of the Dangote Group and Flour Mills of Nigeria (FMN).

“Because it is very embarrassing! We can’t just sit and have a road like that where it is the heart of the trade of the country. More than 60 percent of our country’s import and exports come through the port and we leave it unattended.”

It would be recalled that the Federal Government, represented by the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing and Nigerian Port Authority signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) over the weekend with Dangote Flour Mills and Flour Mills of Nigeria.

Mr Dangote also used this opportunity to address some aspect of the construction including the involvement of FMN and the use of AG Dangote Construction Company to execute the project.

“Both Dangote and Flour Mills are pumping in over N2.5billion for a two-kilometre double lane on each side making a total of four kilometres. we had started on our own and Flour Mills said they will join us."

He also noted that: “…government changed the design because they want all the cables and pipes underground, to ensure a more robust solution.”

“To help in bringing the cost down, I have to force AG Dangote Construction Company to do this project at zero profit.”

“The biggest job is drainage because that is what is destroying the road. We will make sure this problem is sorted out once and for all.”

Tanzania and Nigeria's Dangote Cement have reached a deal on the supply of natural gas to the firm's manufacturing plant in the East African country after negotiations stalled over prices, Tanzanian President John Magufuli said on Saturday.
The $500 million cement factory in the southeastern Tanzanian town of Mtwara, set up last year with an annual capacity of 3 million tonnes, runs on expensive diesel generators and has sought government support to reduce costs.

But the negotiations had stalled with the state-run Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC) saying the company was seeking "at-the-well prices".

After meeting Aliko Dangote, the company's chairman who is Africa's richest man, Magufuli blamed unspecified middlemen of interfering with supply plans and said the issue has now been resolved with gas supplies to be sold at a "reasonable" tariff.

"They (Dangote Cement) will now buy natural gas directly from the state-run TPDC instead of going through middlemen," Magufuli told journalists after the meeting.

He did not give details on the new tariff.

Dangote, Africa's biggest cement producer, has an annual production capacity of 43.6 million tonnes and targets output of between 74 million and 77 million tonnes by the end of 2019 and 100 million tonnes of capacity by 2020.

The company plans to roll out plants across Africa. In Tanzania, Dangote is seeking to double the country's annual output of cement to 6 million tonnes.

The country announced in February that it had discovered an additional 2.17 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of possible natural gas deposits in an onshore field, raising its total estimated recoverable natural gas reserves to more than 57 tcf.

Alhaji Aliko Dangote - the richest man in Africa, is one of many Billionaires living in Lagos, Nigeria.
» more Alhaji Aliko Dangote - the richest man in Africa, is one of many Billionaires living in Lagos, Nigeria.  (Forbes Africa)
Alhaji Aliko Dangote, the President, Dangote Group on Monday disclosed that the company would invest 450 million dollars in agriculture development in Niger State over the next three years
Dangote, who made this known during the 2017 Niger State Investment Summit in Minna, said the funds would  be used in establishing a large scale rice processing mill to process over 200, 000 metric tonnes of paddy rice.

He said that a state-of-the-art fully integrated sugar refining industry would also be established.

“The Dangote Group is committed to invest around 450million dollars over the three next years to establish a large scale rice processing mill for out growers."

“Our company is also establishing a state of the art fully integrated sugar industry involving the development of over 30,000 hectares of sugar cane plantation and the production of about 500, 000 metric tonnes of refined sugar."

“We are very excited about these investments and look forward to kick starting this mutually beneficial partnership with the government and good people of Niger State,” he said.

Dangote, who was represented by Alhaji Mansur Ahmed, noted that the company also planned to invest over one billion dollars in agricultural production and processing of selected commodities like sugar, rice and tomatoes across the country.

According to him, Niger has become the destination of choice for investment in the agricultural sector given its rich and vast arable land.

He said that the company was poised to leverage on that toward a virile agriculture based economy.

Dangote said that the group would also continue to engage governments at the federal and state levels where there were great potential to explore investment opportunities.

The Commissioner for Investment, Commerce and Industry, Mrs Ramatu Yardua said the aim of the summit was to market the state as an investment destination in agriculture considering its enormous potential which were largely untapped.

Yardua said that agriculture was key to moving the country out of recession, adding that the state was committed to creating a conducive and enabling environment for would be investors.

NAN reports that the summit, which had as its theme: Impact Investing for Advancing Agricultural Economy and Innovation will end on Aug. 15.

The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has secured about $2 billion for the expansion of its transmission capacities up to 20,000 megawatts within the next three years.
The fund is also earmarked to help in the rehabilitation of the country's national grid infrastructure.

This was disclosed by the company's Managing Director, Usman Gur Mohammed, at the power sector stakeholders' meeting in Kano presided by Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola.

He revealed that some of the facilities under the company's care are outdated or inadequate to handle power generation, thereby causing hindrance to its optimum capacities.

While addressing questions from journalists, he revealed that the fund for expansion was raised from the World Bank, African Development Bank, Islamic Development Bank, Japanese Agency for International Cooperation (JAICA), and the European Union.

According to him, "Last week, we advertised for transformer capacities for Kano, Kaduna, Lagos, and Shiroro regions. These are part of the projects we have been able to raise from the multilateral regions, and the total capacity we are working towards achieving is 20,000 megawatts in the next three years.

"We have also restarted some projects that had not been doing well like the Abuja Transmission Ring Project, which is supposed to put three substations within the capital territory, and provide another avenue for supply from Lafia.

"We have also resuscitated the JAICA project that had been on the drawing board for a long time. Those two projects plus the project that we are going to raise now is about $1.55billion."

On the challenges facing the company in its expansion bid, Mohammed said, "We discovered that right of way is a big problem in Nigeria, and actually it is a national issue. In trying to expand the capacity of transmission, we started collaborating with the states in every area that we are putting significant capacity.

"As part of these projects and investments, we have raised to expand the transmission lines from Shiroro to Kaduna, and from Kaduna to Kano. We are putting a cord line that will carry 2,400MW capacity. We have never had that kind of capacity in Nigeria."

Former Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has been named as an independent non-executive director at Standard Chartered PLC, a British multinational banking and financial services company.
According to a report by TheCable, she will be earning £130,000 a year for her services to the organisation.

The bank's media specialist at the London Stock Exchange, Jon Tracey, released a statement on Thursday, July 28, 2017, saying the appointment will be effective from November 1.

The statement read, "Dr Okonjo-Iweala will receive a fee of GBP100,000 per annum for her services as an independent Non-Executive Director, with an additional fee of GBP30,000 per annum as a member of the Brand, Values and Conduct Committee.

"This is disclosed in accordance with the Rules Governing the Listing of Securities on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited."

The group's chairman, José Vinals, praised the former minister's knowledge and experience, saying, "Ngozi is a globally recognised African and international figure. She has significant geopolitical, economic, risk and development experience and expertise at a national governmental level and in international organisations, which will provide significant insight and value to the Board.

"She also has deep knowledge of Africa as well as emerging and developing markets. I am delighted to welcome her to Standard Chartered."

Okonjo-Iweala served two terms as Minister of Finance (2003-2006, 2011-2015) and was previously Managing Director of the World Bank (2007-2011).

The 63-year-old Delta state native graduated from Harvard University with a magna cum laude with an AB in Economics in 1976.

World Bank Group says it has an investment portfolio of about 8.5 billion dollars scattered across states and regions in Nigeria to support inclusive economic development and youth empowerment.
Mrs Olufunke Olufon, the Senior Communications Officer, World Bank Nigeria, made this known
in a statement on Sunday in Abuja.

She stated that the investments were to assist the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory to reduce poverty and foster prosperity for all Nigerians.

She noted that the explanation followed concerns raised by Nigerians over the comment by World Bank President, Mr Jim Yong Kim that President Muhammadu Buhari asked the bank to shift its intervention focus to North Eastern states.

She said that the bank was also working with federal and state governments, as well as
development partners on speedy delivery of critical interventions to people of the North East who urgently needed assistance.

She added that “in 2015, the Government of Nigeria requested World Bank support to respond to the humanitarian and development crisis in the North East of Nigeria."

“To assess the needs of the nearly 15 million people in the region impacted by the crisis, the World Bank Group, the UN and European Union carried out a Recovery and Peace Building Assessment (RPBA)."

“And based on the findings of the assessment, World Bank’s 775 million dollars support to the North East focuses on restoring basic education, health services, agricultural production, and livelihood improvement opportunities.”

Olufon noted that the World Bank Group was doubling its resources to address fragility, conflict and violence at the subnational and national levels and help to stabilise places that were affected by high poverty and influx of people.

Following President Muhammadu Buhari’s recent visit to Turkey to boost bilateral trade, 23 Turkish electrical manufacturing  companies will  visit Nigeria this week to meet buyers and distributors.
The Managing Director of Naijalink Ltd., Mrs Thessa Bagu, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the visit would strengthen trade and economic relations between Nigeria and Turkey.

Naijalinks, a local firm, connected foreign companies willing to do business in Nigeria to local buyers or sellers.

“Following renewed Turkish-Nigerian commitments to boost bilateral trade, a Turkish electronics and electrical goods trade mission will, this week, be visiting Nigeria for meetings with local buyers and distributors."

“This trade mission is coming only weeks after President Buhari visited Turkey to strengthen trade and economic relations between Nigeria and Turkey."

“Under the ambit of the Turkish Electro Technology Exporters’ Association (TET) – a professional body representing over 7,500 companies – the trade mission will showcase advanced Turkish white goods, electronics, cables and electrical production and distribution equipment,’’ she said.

Bagu said that the mission would comprise Turkish manufacturers, representing companies across consumer electronics and appliances, lighting, cables, electrical transmission and distribution equipment, industrial automation products and specialised cables.

She said that the mission, to be led by the Vice Chairman of TET Board, Mr Mehmet Kavaklioglu, would hold pre-scheduled meetings with Nigerian business operators at Eko Hotel and suites, Lagos, on Thursday.

According to her, Turkey’s fast-growing electronics, white goods and electrical components sector annually exports over 10 billion dollars in goods to the global market.

NAN reports that Buhari went on a four-day working visit to Turkey on Oct. 18.

The president participated in the ninth D-8 Summit in Istanbul on Oct. 20 and held bilateral meetings with some member-countries.

As the weeks unfold, so does the anticipation grow for us to know who will become the lucky winner of 5 million naira and a brand new Ford Ranger courtesy Ford Motors and Coscharis Motors, the official automotive sponsors of the show.
The Next Titan Nigeria season 4 which is proudly brought to you by Heritage Bank plc, records another week eviction. PRISCA UGBAJA, who is CEO Five Star Cleaning Services, has been evicted from the show. Find out what went down in the board room and why she had to leave by catching  the show weekly on Silverbird TV (DSTV Channel 252) Saturdays 4-5pm & TVC (DSTV Channel 418) Sundays 6-7pm.

Follow the conversation with #TheNextTitan4. Weekly episodes are also available for online streaming on www.youtube.com/c/TheNextTitanTV and for more info visit www.TheNextTitan.com.

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Biafra
Nnamdi Kanu sacked as IPOB leader for 'diverting' over $30m contributed by Igbos

Radio Biafra said Kanu has been replaced by one Mazi Ezenwachukwu Sampson Okwudili.

Radio Biafra, an international media arm of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has announced the removal of Nnamdi Kanu as the director of the broadcast station and leader of IPOB.
The Radio was said to have disclosed this on Sunday, November 12, upon resumption of operations.

According to Daily Post, a lady presenter at the station who gave her name as Ifeoma Okorafor, said that Kanu was dismissed after "extensive and intensive consultations."

The presenter said Kanu has been replaced by one Mazi Ezenwachukwu Sampson Okwudili.

Giving reasons for Kanu's dismissal, she accused the embattled IPOB leader of "Personalisation of the Biafran struggle and derailing from the core objectives of IPOB as a grassroots movement."

Okorafor further said, "Kanu’s actions and his decisions to incite members of IPOB towards violence leading to the death of many innocent young people in Onitsha, Aba and Umuahia is totally unacceptable and grossly irresponsible.

"Kanu privately collected £14 million and another $22 million to purchase landed properties abroad in his name and that of his father, Igwe Israel Kanu, in a clear case of ‘monkey dey work baboon dey chop’.

"Kanu turned our collective struggle into a money-making enterprise for himself and his father. Thus the monies contributed by enterprising and hard-working Igbo youths across the world are being collected and converted by one man and his father while pretending to be sacrificing for the cause.

"Upon his release from detention in April 2017, one expected Kanu to drum up support for the release of his colleagues and co-detainees such as Chidiebere Onwudiwe, Benjamin Madubugwu and David Nwawuisi. These are our brothers who were arrested at the same time with him and they should not be forgotten. We hereby demand their release. Kanu, since his release, has never spoken about them or appealed for the release of these our freedom fighters. Instead, he has been going about collecting chieftaincy titles and having a messianic swagger that even allowed full-blooded Igbo men to kneel down and kiss his feet.

"Kanu threw away the original meaning of our collective struggle for personal gain and vain glorification. IPOB believes in democracy as a solid base of any modern state, the rule of law, and will always reject violence in all its ramifications."

Kanu's whereabouts has been unknown since the Nigerian army personnel allegedly invaded his home.

He is believed to have fled for fear of rearrest having breached the conditions upon which he was granted bail.