Tuesday, 24 March 2026
Nigeria's power generation companies shut down 16 of 33 plants after the government's N6.8 trillion debt to the sector went unresolved, with the gas suppliers who power the grid cutting supply and the debt growing N200 billion every month.
Six gunmen ambushed cocoa farmers at the Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria in Ibadan on Wednesday, abducting four people who had come to submit seedlings for the planting season, while two remained missing as of Thursday morning.
Power Minister Adebayo Adelabu resigned before his March 31 deadline to run for Oyo governor, leaving the grid at 3,331 megawatts, barely half his 6,000 megawatt target, and the N6.8 trillion debt still unresolved.
Ramadan completed its full 30 days after the Shawwal crescent went unsighted on Wednesday, with Eid al-Fitr confirmed for Friday March 20 and over 100 million Nigerians celebrating through bombs, blackouts, and N1,300 petrol.
Nigeria held over 200 trillion cubic feet of proven gas reserves while 16 power plants sat offline, as gas suppliers cut supply over unpaid debts in a sector that had never fully paid its bills since privatisation in 2013.
The UK introduced a student visa brake on March 26 blocking four nationalities, while the Graduate Route shortened to 18 months from January 2027 for non-PhD graduates, leaving applications submitted before December 31 as the last to qualify for the old two-year terms.
The federal government secured a deal for Coventry University to deliver UK-accredited degrees inside Nigeria, offering a lower-cost alternative as UK visa fees, immigration health surcharges, and the weakening naira pushed the full cost of a UK master's beyond N60 million.
The naira came under renewed pressure after February 28 as foreign portfolio investors exited emerging markets following the Iran war, with Nigeria pumping 530,000 fewer barrels daily than budgeted and family remittances losing value on both ends of the transfer.
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Publishing Editor: Adeyemi EKO
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