• Minister of Women Affairs updates Nigerians on the progress of the marriage of 100 orphaned girls
• FG stops issuance of electricity regulatory autonomy to states
• Customs fixes new import duties rate at ₦1,530/$
• SEC Director reveals Binance’s activities negatively impacted Nigerian economy
• MTN announces scholarship for Nigerian students

Across Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, these are the five top Nigerian news stories you shouldn’t miss.

Minister of Women Affairs updates Nigerians on the progress of the marriage of 100 orphaned girls

The Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, alerted the public about what was being done to stop the 100 orphaned girls from being married in Niger State.

She revealed that shortly after getting an injunction from the court to pause the wedding plans, she formed an alliance with the Emir of Kontagora, Niger State, His Royal Highness Alhaji Mohommed Muazu, and they are both working to empower the 100 women.

She stated that with the help of the Emir and some others, the 100 orphaned girls will be given the choice to go to school if they want and be taught in the way of trades if that is also what they desire.

“We are taking this as a challenge. I will empower these women with sustainable economic empowerment.”

FG stops issuance of electricity regulatory autonomy to states

The federal government announced that it would be halting the issuance of electricity regulatory autonomy to state governments as it had established a new policy.

The Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, mentioned that state governments and other stakeholders had no idea what it meant to operate an electricity market.

The minister instead advocated for an adequate understanding of the electricity market by state governments before they were given autonomy; he suggested releasing the autonomy to some specific states in the geographical zones across Nigeria.

Customs fixes new import duties rate at ₦1,530/$

The Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) has raised its rates for import duties to ₦1,530/$ compared to its previous rate of ₦1,441/$.

The new rate published by the NCS was recommended by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for import duties based on the health of the naira in the official Foreign Exchange (FX) market.

SEC Director reveals Binance’s activities negatively impacted Nigerian economy

A Director of the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC), Abdulkadir Abbas, revealed that the activities of Binance Holding Limited in Nigeria were found to be illegal and snaked through the traditional currency trade routes.

Abbas testified this statement at the Federal High Court in Abuja as the first prosecution witness in the Binance trial involving the two executives charged with money laundering.

“Apart from not being registered in Nigeria and making public solicitation without authorisation, the first defendant operates a naira peer-to-peer (P2P) in exchange for crypto assets. The naira P2P being deployed in the transaction circumvents the normal trading route. This is because the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has banned banks from providing a certain settlement platform for crypto exchange,” he said.

MTN announces scholarship for Nigerian students

Giant telecommunications provider MTN has announced its scholarship opportunities for interested Nigerian applicants.

Targeting well-performing students in the tertiary institution, MTN has spread its scholarship across three categories, namely: MTN Science and Technology Scholarship (MTN STS), MTN Scholarship for Blind Students (MTN SBS), and Top 10 UTME Scholarship.

MTN revealed its desire on its official website, saying, “The scholarship is open to eligible 300-level students studying Science & Technology-related courses in Nigerian Public Tertiary Institutions (Universities, Polytechnics, and Colleges of Education). Three hundred students are awarded scholarships until graduation upon meeting grade requirements. Starting in 2024, the annual award amount has increased from N200,000 to N300,000.”