By Kingsley Ighobor

For some African countries, there is cheery news in the 2011 Human Development Report.* Published by the UN Development Programme (UNDP), it ranks countries according to three measures of human development: life expectancy, education and income. In both Kenya and Nigeria extreme poverty has declined due to improvements in water, sanitation, health and other living standards, while Ghana has made steady progress and is now ranked as having medium human development.

The report notes that according to the Human Development Index (HDI, a composite of the three measures), the countries in the lowest 25 per cent of the rankings (including many African countries) improved their status by 82 per cent between 1970 and 2010, twice the average gain worldwide. “If the pace of improvement over the past 40 years were to be continued for the next 40, the great majority of countries would achieve HDI levels by 2050 equal to or better than those now enjoyed only by the top 25 per cent in today’s HDI rankings,” says the report.

Norway, Australia, the Netherlands, US and New Zealand lead in the global index. The report ranks Libya, at 64, as the highest among African countries. It is followed by Mauritius at 77 and Tunisia at 94. Egypt comes in at 113, South Africa at 123 and Nigeria at 159. The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is ranked at 187, the very last, and nine other African countries round out the bottom 10.

The report acknowledges that even though a number of African countries have made progress, they still “suffer from inadequate incomes, limited schooling opportunities and life expectancies far below world averages due in great part to deaths from preventable diseases such as malaria and AIDS.”

The poor showing by some sub-Saharan countries results in part from a legacy of armed conflict, as in the DRC and Liberia. And progress in poor countries may be reversed by mid-century if efforts are not made to deal with climate change, environmental damage and inequalities, the report notes.

The Gender Inequality Index, a recently introduced indicator, lowered the rankings for some African countries, including the Central African Republic, Chad, DRC, Liberia, Mali, Niger and Sierra Leone, all among the ten least equitable countries. “In sub-Saharan Africa the biggest losses arise from gender disparities in education and from high mortality and the adolescent fertility rate.”

The Multidimensional Poverty Index, which examines factors such as access to clean water, cooking fuel and health services (not just income measurements), ranks Niger as having the highest share of poor, followed by Ethiopia and Mali.
The 2011 report covers an unprecedented 187 countries, up from 169 in 2010. This means that the results for 2011 are not comparable to the previous year’s figures, the report notes.

*UN Development Programme, Human Development Report 2011, Sustainability and Equity: A Better Future for All

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Report by Sam Asoluka

Hundreds of Nigerians in the United Kingdom descended on central London, defying the cold weather, to attend a Peace Rally outside Downing Street in solidarity with families who lost their loved ones in terrorist attacks in Northern Nigeria, and to send a clear message to the terrorist group Boko Haram that they will never win.

After delivering a letter to the Prime Minister’s Office, the protesters moved on to the Nigeria High Commission. At the Nigeria House, the protesters handed a letter to Mr Udoye for the High Commissioner, Dr Dalhatu Tafida.

Addressing the protesters, Mr Charles Khiran who represented The Central Association of Nigerians in the UK (CANUK), the umbrella Nigeria Organizations in the United Kingdom condemned the killing of innocent Nigerians in cold blood by Boko Haram.  “Violence is not in the nature of Nigerians and not in our culture, violence is alien to us, ” said Mr. Khiran.

The Protesters urge religious, political leaders and other well meaning Nigerians, especially those in Northern Nigeria, to help in bringing the despicable acts of terrorism to an immediate end, and to bring the perpetrators and sponsors of these heinous crimes to justice, no matter their standing in society’.

The group want the Federal Government of Nigeria to be proactive and serious in addressing the current barbaric situation in Nigeria, and to reassure Nigerians and Foreigners of their safety in any part of the country. The protesters also  demanded for meaningful compensation to all the victims of Boko Haram atrocities and the victims of any reprisal attack.

The Peace Rally was organized by Nigeria Associations and Communities, UK.

Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola (C) at the opening of Shoprite Store in December 2011.

Nigeria has the potential to become as big a retail market for South Africa’s Shoprite as its home base, the head of the supermarket chain said on Tuesday, playing down concerns of rising poverty in Africa’s most populous country.

“Several cities in Nigeria have populations of more than 8 million people. I can’t say all of them have the same spending power, but Nigeria can support the same number of supermarkets as South Africa,” Shoprite chief executive Whitey Basson told Reuters in an interview.

“Even if you have 60 percent of the population living in poverty, 40 percent of the Nigerian population is still bigger than the South African population.”

Shoprite, which reported a 19 percent rise in first-half earnings on Tuesday, runs about 950 supermarkets with 729 of those in South Africa and two stores in Nigeria.

It plans to open 12 more stores outside of South Africa by the end of June, including in the Nigerian cities of Illorin and Abuja. It also plans to enter the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Retailers are increasingly targeting Nigeria, given its population and potential for growth. The country is home to nearly 160 million people, compared to South Africa’s 50 million, according to World Bank estimates.

But Nigeria still has plenty of hurdles to overcome. Poverty is still rising despite strong economic growth, data showed this month. Nearly 61 percent of the population, or about 100 million people, live on less than $1 a day.

U.S. retailer Wal-Mart Stores Inc last year bought a majority stake in South African retailer Massmart, citing growth prospects on the continent.

HIGHER EARNINGS

Cape Town-based Shoprite reported an 18.6 percent rise in first-half headline earnings per share to 280.8 cents, helped by higher prices, a favourable exchange rate and above-inflation wage increases for consumers in its main South African market.

Headline EPS, the primary profit measure in South Africa, strips out certain one-off items.

Consumer spending is improving in Africa’s biggest economy due to decades-low interest rates and above-inflation wage hikes, but the outlook is uncertain due to high debt levels and unemployment.

South African retail sales jumped 8.7 percent year-on-year in December, beating the 6.5 percent growth economists had expected.

Shoprite, a domestic merchant seen likely to lose the most from discounter Wal-Mart’s entry into the country, has been on an aggressive expansion drive in Africa.

Wal-Mart unit Massmart is due to report its first-half results on Wednesday.

Shoprite said sales increased 13.2 percent to 41 billion rand after increasing prices by an average of 4.6 percent and gaining nearly 30 million rand from favourable currency swings.

Shares in Shoprite were up 0.9 at 133.8 rand by 1420 GMT, largely in line with the JSE Top-40 index. Shares of the company have surged more than 40 percent in the last 12 months, lifted by optimism about its Africa growth strategy.

Reuters

President Jonathan at the unveiling of Power sector reforms (road map) in 2010, in Lagos

Nigeria has again pushed back the timeframe for selling off state-owned power assets, its privatization agency said on Monday, another setback for reforms which investors hope will unlock the potential of Africa’s second largest economy.

Despite holding the world’s seventh biggest gas reserves, Nigeria only provides its 160 million people with enough electricity to power a medium-sized European city.

Those who can afford it rely on expensive diesel generators. Those who can’t light candles and lanterns.

President Goodluck Jonathan unveiled power privatisation plans 18 months ago as a major flagship policy and pledged state power generation and distribution assets would be sold off last year.

If he could fix Nigeria’s notoriously creaky power sector where several of his predecessors have failed it would revive his presidency, which is struggling to shake off corruption and a growing Islamist insurgency in the north.

He would also leave one of the most impressive legacies of any Nigerian leader. But several government deadlines on privatisation have been missed and the Bureau of Public Enterprises has set out a new timetable.

“According to the revised bid timeline issued to investors by the privatisation agency, the announcement of the preferred bidders for the 17 successor companies … will be made on/or before October 23, 2012,” a BPE statement said.

It said part of the reason for the delay was the need to address concerns raised by power industry officials at a conference with the Nigerian government in November.

Power infrastructure can be roughly split into three sections: generation, transmission and distribution.

Nigeria plans to award a management contract for transmitting electricity from power plants to substations and privatise the bulk of six power generation plants and 11 distribution firms, which supply end users.

Manitoba Hydro of Canada and state-owned Power Grid of India are the two companies short-listed for the transmission management contract.

Frequent electricity blackouts have long been a brake on growth in sub-Saharan Africa’s second biggest economy and economists say solving the problems could launch GDP growth from its current rate around 7 percent a year into double-digits.

Nigeria was hoping to produce 6,000 megawatts of power by the end of this year, up from the current 4,000. This would still only scratch the surface of the minimum 40,000 megawatts needed for a nation of around 160 million people.

Decades of Nigerian administrations have cashed-in on crude exports rather than investing in plants to refine fuel or developing gas for domestic consumption, which means the poorest half of the population live without power.

Nigeria estimates it will need $10 billion a year of investment over the next decade to meet its energy needs.

Reuters

Bisi Adeleye-Fayemi, Ekiti State First Lady and co-founder the African Women’s Development Fund, (AWDF).

By Bisi Adeleye-Fayemi

Three weeks ago I was at a meeting in Accra, Ghana, in preparation for the biennial African Feminist Forum, which is convened by the African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF), an Africa-wide grant-making foundation for African women which I co-founded twelve years ago.

I was told at the meeting that someone had made comments on Facebook during the fuel subsidy crisis, asking, ‘Where are the Nigerian feminists? Where are the voices of activists like Bisi Adeleye-Fayemi’? The Facebook comments implied that I had stopped being a feminist because I am now the Wife of a Governor.

Soon after I returned home, there was an article in the Sunday edition of one of the national newspapers that was serialised over a two week period. It was a blistering attack on First Ladies, and how they constitute a drain on resources while they conduct themselves in ways which raise questions about credibility and probity.

In the article, the writer also made reference to the fuel subsidy crisis and the fact that nothing was heard from any of the First Ladies in the country. The writer then went on to say, ‘anyway, such issues are probably beyond them’.
A third, and this time, more direct attack on my activities in Ekiti came from Steve Osuji, a columnist with The Nation newspaper unequivocally that my job as the wife of Ekiti Governor, was to look “after the home-front” rather than meddle in the affairs of state. I cringed reading through these articles.

Shortly after my husband became Governor of Ekiti State in October 2010, I spoke to Mrs Kemi Mimiko, Wife of the Governor of Ondo State. She said something to me which I have never forgotten. She said ‘My sister, whatever happens, never take anything personally. It is never about you, it is about the position you are in.’

Reflecting on the discussion with my colleagues in Accra about the Facebook comments and the articles I referred to above, I knew that the advice I had received would come in handy. I however confess, with all sincerity, it is hard.
I have often spoken and written about the fluidity of identities, and how important it is for us to invest in managing our various transitions from one identity to another, whether these identities are claimed by us or thrust upon us. From being a women’s rights activist, gender specialist and social change philanthropy advocate, on October 16th 2010, I became the Wife of a Governor. My own understanding of what happened to me did not translate into abandoning all the things that are important to me – my world view, values, affiliations and principles. I was aware that to make this work, I would need to strike a balance between the things I truly care about, and the expectations of the position I found myself in. I also knew that I would have to work hard at ensuring that my theoretical understanding of power and transformational leadership would be matched by sound, ethical practices.

For many years I have engaged in debates about the role of First Ladies and the pros and cons of the use of informal power structures. The historical use and abuse of non-accountable, unconstitutional power has fueled suspicion and hostility towards First Ladies, and rightfully so. As a feminist activist, I have been very critical of the ways in which women married to men in power hijack the spaces, voices and resources of others, particularly civil society, and use this as a platform to dispense political favours and elevate other elite women. The abuse of the Office of the First Lady and the questions about its legitimacy are not a solely Nigerian phenomenon. These debates continue to take place elsewhere.
The problem we have in Nigeria is the unique ways in which this position has been so grossly abused that people find it hard to be objective or flexible in their assessments of either the position or the occupants. I have also always known that it is precisely because First Ladies wield so much power and influence that it is very dangerous for such power to fall into the hands of ignorant, uninformed and unethical persons. I have had the opportunity of working closely with such great role models as Graca Machel Mandela, who taught me that it does not matter if people are suspicious of you or your intentions just because of who you are married to – if there are things you feel strongly about go out there and get the job done. Till this moment, Mama Graca as some of us fondly call her, remains one of the most credible and consistent advocates of gender equality, children’s rights and good governance that we have on the continent.

I accept that because I am the Wife of a Governor, I can no longer go to Aleshinloye market in Ibadan (a favourite place of mine) or Balogun market in Lagos without causing a stir. I agree that it is not appropriate to stop the convoy just because I want to buy Gala. I however do not agree with the assumption that because I am the Wife of a Governor, my IQ has dropped to single digits. I do not agree that I cannot find a way of working with government officials without making them feel that I am bossing them around. I do not agree that working collaboratively and respectfully with people in government amounts to meddling. I do not agree that I cannot do things different from the norm. I find it hard to understand why people will believe that because my husband is Governor of a State, my only role now is to make his bed, wash his clothes, take care of the children, cook his food and rub his feet when he comes home. This is what is called ‘looking after the home front’, and it seems to be the preferred and only role for First Ladies. This is fine by me, as long as we can also accept the fact that ‘looking after’ and ‘home front’ means different things to different people.

Since October 2010, I have been spending my time ‘looking after the home front’ in my own way. I resigned from my full-time, extremely well remunerated position as Executive Director of AWDF in Ghana and moved back to Nigeria to be with my husband. I figured out how to run our own homes in Ibadan and Isan-Ekiti, as well as living in State House. My husband is adequately fed, healthy, well groomed, and on top of his game. I am involved with government agencies such as the Ekiti State Agency for AIDS Control which I Chair, as well as the Ekiti State Consultative Committee on Arts, Culture and Tourism. I also do a lot of work with the Ministry of Women Affairs, Social Development and Gender Empowerment, the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Ministry of Health to mention a few. My involvement with these agencies is mainly advisory and based on tremendous mutual respect. In addition, I have commitments to national and international organisations such as the Nigerian Women’s Trust Fund (as Chair), the African Women’s Development Fund and the African Grantmakers Network.

Over the past sixteen months, I have worked with various stakeholders to ensure that we have more women in decision making at all levels in the State. Before the April 2011 elections we had no women in the Ekiti State House of Assembly. Now we have four. Again, in June 2011, Ekiti State became the first state in Nigeria to domesticate the National Gender Policy. After being faced with a wave of violent attacks on young girls and women in the State, I pushed for the Gender Based Violence Prohibition Bill which was signed into law on November 25th 2011. I advocated for the establishment of the Multiple Births Trust Fund which is managed by the Ministry of Women’s Affairs. In order to bring back to Ekiti what I have done in the field of social change philanthropy, I launched the Ekiti Development Foundation (EDF) on June 10th 2011. Since then we have supported a range of women’s organisations across the state, reaching out to hundreds of women in remote places. We have also supported several government projects with funding we have raised from donors. The funding for EDF comes from collaborations with various institutions, corporate sponsorship, wealthy philanthropists and support in kind.

I have been involved in all these things because I want to remain true to who and what I am. I am acutely aware of the dreadful baggage my position carries, and how easy it is for people to cast aspersion on the motives of people such as myself, based on the experiences they have had with many spouses of occupants of State Houses at the national and state levels. I however know that I am in a position where I can make a difference in the lives of people and for once, allow myself to be held accountable, the same way in which as a member of many social justice movements over the years, I have demanded accountability from leaders across the African continent.

My main responsibility as the Wife of a Governor is to support my husband. The husband I have been married to for over twenty-two years needs me to work with him and his team to help build our beloved Ekiti State, the Land of Honour, and to make good on all the promises he made to the electorate who stood by us all through our legal battles to reclaim his mandate. That is the ‘home front’ support my husband needs from me right now. My husband will be very disappointed in me if I opt to spend most of my time sitting at home and attending social functions to show off my latest lace and head-ties. He will consider it a terrible waste of my experience, skills and talents.

Many commentators on the First Lady debate raised the issue of the ‘illegality’ of the position, since it does not exist in the Constitution. The fact that it is not written in the constitution does not make the office ‘illegal’. There is nowhere in the constitution where it is written that there shall be an Office of the Chief of Staff, for example. However, it is hard to see how a President or Governor can operate without appointing someone into that position, even if the designation is called something else. One of the problems with the Office of the First Lady is that over the years, we have allowed our experiences with power-hungry, unscrupulous women listening to poor advice to cloud our judgement.

In my own opinion, the question of legitimacy can be addressed if we can engage in conversations devoid of the usual venom, hypocrisy, sexism and ignorance which bubbles to the surface every time the First Lady question comes up. If there is legislation and a budgetary provision recognising the Office of the Spouse either at national or state level, then there will be more transparency and accountability around their activities. I know many people will raise hell at this suggestion of mine. The Office of the First Lady of the United States evolved over time. It is not in the American constitution, and for many years the Office was not funded, except for the use of seconded, temporary staff. All this changed in November 1978 when President Jimmy Carter approved Public Law 95-570 which provided for the First Lady’s budget and staff. Till today, debates still rage in the US about the various occupants of the office, their politics, choices, their value addition or subtraction and so on, but there is consensus that the Office itself has come to stay and it does have a vital role to play.

There are many historical, cultural and social reasons why we might never do this in Nigeria. When I have raised this in private discussions, people ask about those who have more than one wife, and how this will work? My response to this is – let the laws provide for one spouse and let the husband and spouses concerned figure it out amongst themselves! Please note that I am asking for recognition for ‘Spouses’ and not ‘Wives’ in anticipation of when we will have women in these key positions. As I agree that this is not something people are prepared to countenance at a time when we have serious debates around the cost of governance, what I am calling for is for us not to conflate our apprehensions, no matter how legitimate they might be, with the reality that this despised ‘Office’ cannot be wished away. First Ladies are not a homogenous group. We have different contexts, interests and abilities. Just as is done in other places like the US which we are often fond of quoting, why don’t we try separating the Office from the individuals who transit through it and allow for processes of accountability, monitoring and assessment based on individual merit?

I often tell people that we can have lengthy debates about the constitutionality or otherwise of my office but the fact remains that if you have been trying to see my husband for three months and he will not return your calls, I can arrange for you to have breakfast with him tomorrow morning. Now you can debate the constitutionality of that! Just because we have had Presidents who have fallen short of our expectations or Governors who cannot govern does not mean we should stop having them. It means we should ask hard questions about the quality of leadership we need in our country right now and ensure that we stop scratching the bottom of the barrel. It is true that we have experienced First Ladies at all levels with little or no understanding of strategic thinking, good manners, decorum and protocol. This however does not mean that we should not try to learn how to do things differently. We simply need to add this to the long list of good governance issues we have to grapple with. There is no point electing a saint as a leader if he is going home to the warm embrace of a dragon.

I now believe that some of the things expected of people such as myself is silence on things that matter and invisibility in things that can truly make a difference. For those who would like to know, I do have an opinion on the fuel subsidy crisis. I do have an opinion on the gap between the kind of leadership we deserve in Nigeria and the kind we have right now. I have an opinion on the breach of the social contract between the leaders and the people. I have an opinion on the kind of legacy I would like to bequeath my children. I have an opinion on the conduct that is expected of Wives of top government officials, particularly First Ladies. I have strong opinions on our national and human security challenges and the implications for women and children. All my opinions are channelled through my work as a pan-Africanist, political activist, human rights advocate, women’s rights defender, social change philanthropist and being the Wife of a progressive, brilliant, visionary Governor. Every day I work hard at ensuring that I exercise my informal power and authority with the utmost discretion, respect, sensitivity, and integrity. I might not always get it right, but I try.

I did not decide to write this article to appeal for sympathy for First Ladies. I needed to find my voice and speak for myself. I wanted to let people know that things are not always what they seem. The few First Ladies I am close to work extremely hard. People see the glamour, the glitz, the fashion parades, the perks, the gaffes, the slights—both real and imagined. No one ever talks about the loneliness, the vulnerability, the toll on relationships, the hard work, the unbearable pressure from family, friends and political associates, the sacrifices, loss of privacy and the claustrophobia. As a Governor’s wife I don’t have the luxury of thinking or talking about these things. I am too focused on not taking things personally.

This article originally titled Nigeria’s First Lady Debate: Speaking for Myself was first published in PM Nigeria.

Nigeria Consulate in London, United Kingdom

By Sam Asoluka

Nigerians living in the United Kingdom will be holding a Peace Rally outside Downing Street, London on the 18th of February, 2012 in solidarity with families who lost their innocent loved ones in terrorist attacks and to send a clear message to the terrorist group Boko Haram that they will never win.

According to the Organizer, Nigeria Associations & Communities in the United Kingdom (NAC-UK), the Peace Rally is one in a series of ‘Diaspora Actions’ against terrorism in Nigeria.

The massacre of innocent Nigerians, especially, in places of worship is evil and it is hardly incomprehensible when it is claimed to be executed in God’s name or in the name of a Religion.

NAC-UK attests its support for the secular status of Nigeria where religion and freedom can co-exist. We believe that religion ought to promote peace, love, fairness and freedom. Any religion which fails to promote these universal human and divine values can be considered a grave danger to society and is anti God. We, therefore, call on the leaders of Islam, Christianity and Natural Religion to endeavour to inculcate these civilised values in their followers.

NAC-UK urges the religious and political leaders, especially those in Northern Nigeria, the Federal Government of Nigeria and all peace and truth loving Nigerians, men and women of goodwill everywhere to help in bringing these despicable acts of terrorism to an immediate end and to bring the perpetrators of these heinous crimes and their sponsors to book, no matter their standing in society’ the group said.

If we have any decency or humanity in us which, I believe we have, we must mobilize Nigerians and friends of Nigeria to the streets of London on February 18, 2012, to stop the ongoing violence. The option of sitting at home and screaming at the television or radio is not good enough. Let what we do speak louder than our words.

We must mobilize for change in our attitude as Nigerians against unspeakable evil, we must mobilise against violence. We must restore hope to the distressed, the bereaved, the injured, and the dispossessed. To sit back now and do nothing may spell disaster for us in the future; our inactions, witting or unwitting encourage the violent disintegration of Nigeria.

We should not wait for other people to take up this campaign. This is a cause that every Nigerian should be associated with.

To support the Peace Rally of the 18 February, 2012 in London, is the least we can do for now to draw the attention of the International Community to the evils of terrorism before it is too late.

Finally, we urge the Federal Government of Nigeria to be seen to be proactive and serious in addressing the current barbaric situation in Nigeria and reassure Nigerians and Foreigners of their safety in any part of the country, and also pay meaningful compensation to all the victims of Boko Haram atrocities and the victims of any reprisal attack

NAL Staff writer
It was a sad day for members of the Nigerian security services as they watched one of their own killed in the line of duty; his lifeless body torn apart and thrown around by a bomb explosion.

The horrific video footage of a Nigerian Police Force killed while trying to defuse a bomb is now circulating online. The explosion, blamed on Boko Haram islamists, occurred in Kaduna on Tuesday.

“We lost one of our men from the police bomb disposal unit. He died when an explosive device he was trying to defuse exploded, killing him on the spot,”Kaduna state police spokesman Aminu Lawan told the Associated Free Press.

The video footage shows crowd of onlookers gathered around and applauding the officer while he attempted to defuse the bomb placed by road side. The officer was in his uniform, unprotected with anti-bomb explosion shield. The sudden explosion caused people to run for safety while screaming  Allahu-Akbar – God is Great.

The video is another wake-up call for the Nigerian government in its battle against internal terrorism greatly influenced by poor standard of living, political corruption and religious ideologies.

WARNING: Please be warned that this video contains horrific graphic images that can be offensive to some people.

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 Reuters - Poverty in Nigeria is rising with almost 100 million people living on less than $1 a day, despite strong growth in Africa’s second largest economy, data showed on Monday.

The percentage of Nigerians living in absolute poverty – those who can afford only the bare essentials of food, shelter and clothing – rose to 60.9 percent in 2010, compared with 54.7 percent in 2004, the national bureau of statistics said.

Although Nigeria’s economy is projected to continue growing, poverty is likely to get worse as the gap between rich and poor in Africa’s largest oil producer continues to widen.

“It remains a paradox … that despite the fact that the Nigerian economy is growing, the proportion of Nigerians living in poverty is increasing every year,” Statistician General Yemi Kale told reporters in the capital Abuja.

“NBS estimates that this trend may have increased further in 2011 if the potential positive impacts of several anti-poverty and employment generation intervention programs are not taken into account,” Kale said.

Corruption is rife in Nigeria and for decades politicians have focused on milking cash from crude oil exports, which average more than 2 million barrels per day, rather than developing infrastructure and creating jobs for locals.

Despite holding the world’s seventh largest gas reserves, which could be used to generate power, Nigeria only produces enough electricity to power a medium-sized European city.

More than half of the country’s 160 million inhabitants live without electricity, while the rest have to rely on expensive generators run on diesel supplies controlled by a small and powerful cartel of importers.

Tens of thousands of Nigerians protested for over a week in January against the government’s decision to end subsidies on petrol imports, a decision welcomed by economists.

What started as a protest against fuel prices, quickly developed into anger over government corruption and poor governance and pressure has been building on President Goodluck Jonathan to tackle graft, particularly in the oil sector.

Jonathan has set up several committees and an audit report is being carried out on the national oil company NNPC. Many such reports have been ignored in the past and industry experts say it is unlikely endemic corruption will be reined in.

The protests came at a bad time for Jonathan who has been criticized for not getting a grip on increasingly deadly attacks by radical Islamist sect Boko Haram in the north.

Boko Haram, which wants Islamic law more widely applied in Nigeria, killed more than 250 people in January in a series of bomb and gun attacks in northern cities. It mostly focuses its violence on the police and other authority figures.

Poverty feeds the unrest because the sect is able to coax into its campaign disillusioned youths angry with a government which offers them little.

Data on Monday showed that the northeast and northwest, where Boko Haram originated, are the poorest regions in Nigeria. The southwest, which includes the thriving commercial hub Lagos, had the lowest levels of poverty.

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Infograph by map shows wealth distribution across states and region in Nigeria. source: BBC

President Goodluck Jonathan commissioning the Dangote Cement factory at Ibeshe, Ogun state, on Thursday. L-R: Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Gov. Ibikunle Amosun and Mr Femi Otedola. Photo: STATE HOUSE

 Nigerian manufacturing group Dangote has opened a one-billion-dollar cement plant near the economic capital Lagos, one of the largest investments in the oil-rich west African country.

Chukie "LYNXXX" Edozien, Naija R&B star and Pepsi brand ambassador.

By Nigerians Abroad Live (NAL) staff writer

Needed something to inspire you for Valentine’s Day? We got you hooked up, the “nawti” or ice cream factory’s way?

There are plenty of Valentine’s Day special that you are probably way too familiar with by now – an evening at a movie place, fine dinning diner, a romantic walk by the waterfront, chilling on the beach,  last minute gift rush, or simply  a live-n-let-live sex rage.

For something different, you may want to consider treating your Val to something unique that many of us still underestimate, some we-time – just the two of you in the apartment, some Swiss chocolates, a bottle of sparkling wine, laugh and jokes to each other stories (how it all began, the good times and the silly times you’ve shared together). All under the right ambiance, lighting and background music. This is the LYNXXX way.

LYNXXX (birth name Chukie Edozien) latest release Ice Creme Factory is the perfect Naija R&B or Jollof music, as some of us would like to call it, to set you and your lover in the mood. The Pepsi brand  ambassador first single Change Ur Parade was released in December 2009.

If the LYNXXX way is too subtle for you then the Olu Maintain way is the way to go. Mr Yahoozee latest release NAWTi featuring Natalie Nunn, California based reality TV star, is the newest hit on YouTube. It’s raw and hot.

Either way you go, the two videos rated four out of five are true tests of your persona – how you like your valentine.

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