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The Federal Government is pressing ahead with critical tax reforms not just to boost tax revenue and efficiency but also to meet the requirements for a $750m loan from the World Bank.
This loan project is a part of the broader $2.25bn approved by the World Bank for Nigeria on June 13, 2024, to bolster Nigeria’s economic stability and support its vulnerable populations.
The other second part of the loan package was for the Nigeria Reforms for Economic Stabilisation to Enable Transformation, Development Policy Financing Programme project.
For the second loan, The PUNCH earlier reported that the Federal Government had obtained $751.88m out of the approved $1.5bn so far.
However, there has yet to be a disbursement for the first loan of $750m.
PUNCH Online observed that disbursement for the first loan is tied to specific fiscal and governance conditions under the Accelerating Resource Mobilisation Reforms programme.
The ARMOR programme includes three main result areas: implementing tax and excise reforms to increase Value-Added Tax collections and excise rates on health and environmentally friendly products; strengthening tax and customs administrations to enhance VAT compliance and audit effectiveness; and safeguarding oil and gas revenues by increasing transparency and net revenue contributions.
PUNCH Online obtained a copy of the signed loan agreement between Nigeria (through the Ministry of Finance) and the World Bank on Sunday.
The agreement document read in part, “The bank agrees to lend to the borrower the amount of $750,000,000 as such amount may be converted from time to time through a currency conversion (“Loan”), to assist in financing the programme described in Part 1 of Schedule 1 to this Agreement (“Programme”) and the project described in Part 2 of Schedule 1 to this Agreement (“Project”, and together with the Programme, hereinafter jointly referred to as the “Operation”).
“The borrower may withdraw the proceeds of the loan in accordance with Section IV of Schedule 2 to this Agreement. All withdrawals from the loan account shall be deposited by the Bank into an account specified by the Borrower and acceptable to the bank.”
According to the Disbursement Linked Indicators set out in the loan agreement, the loan will only be released upon achieving measurable progress in key areas.
These include raising VAT collection through improved regulations, increasing excise taxes on health and environmental products, and boosting corporate tax compliance through enhanced digital infrastructure.
Central to the ARMOR programme is the government’s plan to increase VAT rates and expand taxpayer compliance.
Some of the loan targets include increasing VAT collections to 1.8 per cent of non-oil Gross Domestic Product, unlocking $105m of the loan.
Also, there is a target to register 660,000 VAT filers, which will release $30m from the loan.
An e-invoicing system for VAT traders, once launched, will trigger $20m, with an additional $45m upon 30 per cent trader adoption.
In an effort to boost VAT revenue, the Federal Government is considering a bill proposing an increase in the VAT from 7.5 per cent to 10 per cent by 2025.
VAT refers to a consumption tax on goods and services levied at each stage of the supply chain where value is added.
In the executive bill seen by PUNCH Online, the legislature also intends to increase the VAT to 12.5 per cent by 2026 through 2029.
“VAT shall be charged on the value of all taxable supplies at the following rates (a) 2025 year of assessment 10 per cent; (b) 2026, 2027 2028, and 2029 years of assessment 12.5 per cent (c) 2030 year of assessment and thereafter 15 per cent,” the document reads.
Also, a copy of the Stakeholder Engagement Plan for Nigeria – Accelerating Resource Mobilisation Reforms programme dated March 2024 showed that the government is required to reintroduce the excises on telecom services, EMT levy on electronic money transfers through the Nigerian Banking System among other taxes.
Further findings by PUNCH Online also showed that one of the tax bills at the National Assembly included this excise tax.
The Federal Government has proposed a five per cent excise duty on telecommunications services, gaming, and betting activities as part of a new bill to overhaul Nigeria’s tax framework.
The bill, titled “A Bill for an Act to Repeal Certain Acts on Taxation and Consolidate the Legal Frameworks relating to Taxation and Enact the Nigeria Tax Act to Provide for Taxation of Income, Transactions, and Instruments, and Related Matters,” was dated October 4, 2024.
An analysis of the proposed legislation showed that it seeks to introduce excise duties on services such as telecoms, gaming, gambling, lotteries, and betting provided in Nigeria.
Also, the program outlines specific allocations for technical assistance, with $5m each going to the Federal Inland Revenue Service and the Nigeria Customs Service to support their capacity to implement these new measures effectively.
This includes the development of systems for better data sharing, risk-based audits, and compliance processes, as well as substantial investments in program management and capacity building.
There will also be $10m for project management, tax policy capacity-building and other expenses.
In total, the amount makes the $20m investment financing before the release of $730m in line with fiscal targets met.
The FIRS will receive $5m to develop and implement critical initiatives aimed at enhancing its operations and revenue collection capabilities.
This funding will support the development and implementation of a robust third-party data sharing platform, along with administrative control programs to streamline operations and enhance efficiency.
Also, the FIRS will develop a VAT lottery system and an e-invoicing system, both of which rely heavily on advanced software and extensive communication planning. These systems are designed to boost VAT collections and improve compliance among taxpayers.
The funding will facilitate the creation of a risk-based audit assessment program for VAT and Corporate Income Tax, aimed at enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of audit processes within the agency.
Similarly, the NCS will receive $5m to enhance its administrative processes and improve compliance.
This funding will be used to design and implement new administrative processes, including the establishment of sanctions for non-compliance with excise rules.
The NCS will also develop centralised control room systems equipped with backup and disaster recovery capabilities, ensuring operational continuity and resilience in case of emergencies.
Moreover, the funding will support capacity-building initiatives, enabling the NCS to effectively manage and implement these new systems and processes, ultimately leading to improved compliance and operational efficiency.
The loan also focuses on customs reforms to improve trade compliance and increase revenue.
Directing 15 per cent of cargo through the Green Channel will unlock $35m, while a compliant trader programme under the Authorized Economic Operator framework is linked to $15m.
Other loan-linked targets include reducing tax expenditures by eliminating corporate bond interest exemptions and rationalising the Pioneer Status Industry Tax Incentive scheme by the end of 2024, each unlocking $10m.
Also, excise taxes on health-related products and environmentally harmful goods will increase. A presidential order to introduce these excises will trigger $10m, with an additional $30m if revenue from green taxes reaches 0.2 per cent of non-oil GDP.
The Federal Government recently inaugurated a Joint Committee of staff of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission and FIRS to review the current guidelines for the administration of the PSI, validate the cost of the incentive to Nigeria, and recommend changes to the qualification and administration.
The Taiwo Oyedele-led Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms plans to replace the abused pioneer status with priority sector incentives, rewarding companies based on their investments in the economy.
Also, in one of the executive bills, the Federal Government plans to introduce an Economic Development Incentive Certificate as a tax incentive for companies investing in capital projects.
As outlined in the bill, firms seeking the certificate must submit their applications through the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission, accompanied by a non-refundable fee of 0.1 per cent of the capital expenditure, capped at N5m.
The NIPC will review and recommend the applications to the Minister for approval, after which the Minister may forward the recommendation to the President.
A part of the bill read, “The application shall be accompanied by a non-refundable fee of 0.1% of the qualifying capital expenditure incurred or to be incurred, subject to a maximum of N5,000,000.00 and no further fee shall be payable in respect of such application.
“The NIPC shall recommend the application to the Minister, for approval or otherwise, including the projected tax expenditure impact report in its recommendation.”
The tax bill noted that approval from the President is mandatory before the certificate is issued.
Once granted, the NIPC is required to submit an annual report detailing the sectors and companies that benefited from the scheme to the Minister, who must present the report to the President and the National Economic Council within 30 days.
[Punch]
There are indications that the local currency is set to fully reverse its gains as the depreciation trend enters a new height, hitting N1,740/$1 in the parallel market at the close of trading last weekend.
However, the Naira remained stable with minor appreciation in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market, NAFEM, as dealers speculate that the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, would likely intervene any moment from now to curtail the pressure on the exchange rate.
Data from FMDQ showed that the indicative exchange rate for NAFEM fell to N1,600 per dollar from N1,601.2 per dollar on Thursday, indicating N1.2 appreciation for the naira.
Dealers who spoke to Financial Vanguard at the weekend said they expect the exchange rate to close this month around N1,750/$1 while 2024 may end at over N1,800/$1.
If this trend continues, by the end of the year, the local currency will have wiped out the gains it made in March this year when it suddenly appreciated massively, climbing down from an all-time high rate of N1,820/ $1 in February 2024 to N1,310/ $1 and further down to N1,240/ $1.
However, the appreciation was halted in April; subsequently, depreciation began and sustained until last week.
Year-on-year, YoY, Naira depreciated in the parallel market by 70.5 per cent to N1,705 per dollar at the close of the third quarter trading on September 30, 2024, from an average of N1,000/ $1 in September 2023.
Year-to-Date, YtD, depreciated by 16.7 per cent from N1,490/ $1 in January 2024.
The Naira recorded a massive 104% YoY depreciation in the official segment, NAFEM, to N1540.78 per dollar in September 2024 from N755.27 in September 2023. However, YoY NAFEM has recorded just 9.9 per cent depreciation to N1600/ $1 last weekend from N1,455.9/ $1 in January 2024.
Analysts and dealers have blamed the sustained depreciation of the local currency on supply shortages.
Fiscal, and monetary authorities in divergent tunes.
The monetary and fiscal policy authorities appear to be seeing the problem differently. At the last Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting, the Governor of the CBN, Mr. Yemi Cardoso, who doubles as the MPC Chairman stated that members of the MPC had noticed a correlation between the period of FAAC disbursement and demand pressures in the foreign exchange market.
According to him, the apex bank will monitor future FAAC allocation disbursement to determine the impact on the FX market.
Cardoso stated: “Furthermore, members observed a strong correlation between FAAC releases and liquidity levels in the banking system as well as its impacts on the exchange rates.”
“The committee therefore agreed to increase monitoring of future releases to address its effects on price development.”
This position creates the impression that fiscal actions have been undermining the exchange rate stability with demand pressures.
However, last week in Washington DC, on the sidelines of the just concluded World Bank Group annual meetings, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, said the problem with Nigeria’s foreign exchange market is supply and as an oil-producing nation, Nigeria could address that by significantly increasing her oil production output.
He stated: “The key about the foreign exchange market really is supply and as you know we are an oil-producing country, we just need to get our oil production up and that will deal with that issue of foreign exchange supply and pressure on foreign exchange anytime there are large flows.”
This implied that rather than demand pressure from whichever quarters, the problem is inadequate supply.
Meanwhile, forex dealers have said the acute shortage amidst demand pressures has shifted the exchange rate near the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) “fear index”, a development which they believe would compel the apex bank to launch emergency defensive measures including raising the volume of supply intervention involving all dealers to boost FX liquidity.
They also believe such a reaction from the apex bank would prevent the exchange rate from further deterioration and possibly pull it back from the fear zone.
Since August 8, the CBN has not conducted retail Dutch FX auctions it resumed in 2024 as the apex bank tinkers with a ‘minimal intervention’ approach, a behaviour some dealers believe was not unconnected with the challenges of limited forex resources available to it.
Some of the dealers told Financial Vanguard that the expected intervention from the apex bank would be complemented by a plan by the CBN to test-run its new Automated FX Trading model next month.
The model which is designed to enhance transparency and controls in the market, is planned to go live from December, ditching a nearly decade-old over-the-counter trading system in a bid to enhance transparency and remove market distortions.
According to the apex bank, the new system would “facilitate a market-driven exchange rate accessible to the public”.
In a circular released on October 02, 2024 which provided the guidelines for the new system, the CBN stated: “This development is expected to reduce speculative activities, eliminate market distortions and give the CBN improved oversight.”
The CBN said a two-week test run would be carried out in November, without specifying the exact dates.
Naira may rank worst globally
The current rate of depreciation would likely present Naira as the worst-performing currency worldwide in 2024.
The Federal Government had celebrated the sharp appreciation of the Naira in March 2024, noting that the development ranked it as one of the best-performing currencies then.
However, with the renewed depreciation trend, the World Bank, last week ranked the Naira amongst the worst-performing in sub-Sahara Africa.
Dealers comment
Commenting on the state of the parallel market, some of the dealers told Financial Vanguard about their supply and demand situation in the official market.
According to them, when big buyers fail to get supply from the official market they resort to the black market.
They also said the supply they get from some people connected in the official market may be difficult to get, a situation which makes the USDollar to be very scarce and forces the exchange rate to go up.
Mr. Liasu Moshood, a black market trader said: “The depreciation of Naira in the market is due to the rush for dollars by importers who don’t have access to the official foreign exchange market. “There is less dollar supply everywhere and not all of us come to the market now because you can hardly get dollars you want to trade.
“These importers are sourcing large amounts of dollars from our market because those Bureau De Changes cannot meet their demands. Even the banks.
On his part, Mr. Idris Daud, a trader projected the dollar to close the month at N1,750 per dollar and end the year at N1,800 threshold. “Today, the dollar is sold between N1,730 and N1,740, especially by top foreign exchange black market dealers.
“The demand pressure now is high as more organizations are trying to import goods for the festive season in December and at the same time some are trying to restock before year-end as they are not certain what the foreign exchange rate might be before the end of the year. This is another reason for the pressure.
“There is also less inflows of foreign exchange getting to our end and we end up with little supply.
“I foresee the naira closing this month at N1,750 against the dollar and in the next three months at N1,800 per dollar on the back of continued pressure on demand and supply factor.”
[Vanguard]
Bayo Onanuga, special adviser on information and strategy to President Bola Tinubu, says his principal has never called himself the minister of petroleum.
In 2023, Tinubu appointed Ekperipe Ekpo as minister of state for petroleum resources (gas), and Heineken Lokpobiri as minister of state, petroleum resources (oil).
Speaking on the president’s recent cabinet reshuffle, on Sunday, when he featured in a Channels Television programme, Onanuga said the president never saw himself as the substantive petroleum minister.
”You people in the media gave him that position. There are two ministers of petroleum. As far as the president is concerned, there are two ministers there and one of them focuses on gas,“ he said.
”This present government found that in the past, Nigeria neglected that gas sector. Nigeria is more of a gas country than an oil country.
”Former president Obasanjo recently said he made a mistake by not focusing on gas and Tinubu is rectifying that.”
In the last administration, former President Muhammadu Buhari had appointed himself the minister of petroleum resources.
In his first term, Buhari appointed Ibe Kachikwu as minister of state for petroleum resources. Kachikwu was replaced by Timipre Sylva in the second term.
[TheCable]
Why is the government betting big on a technology that promises much, but has so far delivered little?
Admin
Amid the hum of cooling fans and squelch of vacuum pumps, a new home for 12 quantum computers has opened in Oxfordshire, as part of a bid to put the UK ahead in a global race to harness the technology.
Quantum computers promise to solve problems too hard for even the most powerful supercomputers - like those requiring vast numbers of parallel computations like complex weather simulations, the binding of drugs to their targets, or the vagaries of financial markets.
While prototypes have proven that the weird world of quantum matter can be used to perform calculations - none are yet large or stable enough to be of much use.
"With its focus on making quantum computers practically useable at scale, this centre will help them solve some of the biggest challenges we face," said science minister Lord Vallance.
Quantum computers exploit the strangeness of quantum physics to replace the "bits" - zeros and ones - that encode information in classical computers with something fundamentally different.
If manipulated in the right way, matter can be coaxed into quantum bits - or qubits - that can be both a zero and a one at the same time.
This power, and the fact qubits can become "entangled," or interact with each other means a relatively small number of qubits can perform more calculations in parallel than a classical computer chip ever could.
However, even the slightest interference from the outside world can destroy a fragile qubit, so building groups of them large enough that last long enough to make a reliable computer is a major challenge.
The new National Quantum Computing Centre at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Harwell is designed to accelerate that research.
The 4,000-square-metre facility is designed to host multiple competing designs of quantum computer and around a hundred scientists working on them.
Some commercial, others developed by university teams - to try to solve hardware and software problems in parallel.
"The UK National Quantum Computing Centre is central to this critical work, bringing together internationally leading researchers and technologists from across academia and industry to ensure that the UK's quantum computing ecosystem thrives," said Prof Dame Ottoline Leyser, chief executive of UK Research and Innovation that is funding the centre.
Competition is fierce. Big tech firms like Google, Microsoft, IBM and Amazon are all investing in quantum technology. So too are other states, led by China, which directs more government funding into the field than anyone else.
The potential for quantum computers to crack the encryption tools used to keep most online traffic secure gave rise to the term "Q-day" - when the first machine emerges with the capability to decrypt the internet.
It's still some way off, but helps explain why governments are interested in betting big on a technology that promises much, but has so far delivered little.
[SkyNews]
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (2330.TW), opens new tab suspended shipments to China-based chip designer Sophgo after a chip it made was found on a Huawei AI processor, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Sophgo had ordered chips from TSMC that matched the one found on Huawei's Ascend 910B, the people said. Huawei is restricted from buying the technology to protect U.S. national security. Reuters could not determine how the chip ended up on the Huawei product.
Sophgo said in a statement on its website on Sunday that it was in compliance with all laws and had never engaged in any business relationship with Huawei. Sophgo, which is affiliated with cryptocurrency mining equipment company Bitmain, said it had provided a detailed investigation report to TSMC to prove that it was not related to Huawei.
TSMC declined to comment. Huawei did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The U.S. Department of Commerce said it was aware of reports of potential violations of U.S. export controls but it could not comment on whether any investigation was ongoing.
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Tech research firm TechInsights discovered the TSMC chip on Huawei's Ascend 910B when it took apart the multi-chip processor, a different source told Reuters on Tuesday. Alerted to the finding, about two weeks ago TSMC notified the U.S., the source said.
About the same time, TSMC also halted shipments to a client, Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing a Taiwan official who said the suspension came after the company discovered a chip it supplied to the client ended up in a Huawei product.
TSMC alerted Taiwan and U.S. authorities, and began a detailed investigation, the official said. But the official did not name the client, which the latest sources identified as Sophgo. The Information tech news outlet also reported the name on Saturday.
TSMC, the world's largest contract chipmaker, said earlier this week it had not supplied Huawei since mid-September 2020, and that it "proactively communicated" with the Commerce Department regarding the matter.
"We are not aware of TSMC being the subject of any investigation at this time," the company statement said.
Shenzhen-based Huawei said in a statement on Tuesday it has not produced any chips via TSMC after the U.S. imposed new export rules on the company in 2020.
In 2020, the U.S. expanded its authority to stop shipments of foreign-produced items to Huawei that are the direct product of U.S. technology or software, including TSMC's chips.
Before then, TSMC supplied chips for Huawei's Ascend series, sources told Reuters earlier this year. Its Ascend 910B, released in 2022, is viewed as the most advanced AI chip available from a Chinese company.
In August, the Research Institute for Democracy, Society and Emergency Technology (DSET) in Taiwan reported that Bitmain, which it described as a leading Chinese integrated circuit design enterprise and supplier of cryptocurrency mining machines, was "aiming to challenge the AI chip market dominance of Nvidia (NVDA.O), opens new tab and AMD (AMD.O), opens new tab."
The DSET report described Sophgo as a Bitmain affiliate.
Sophgo was co-founded by Micree Zhan, who also co-founded Bitmain, according to a corporate registration database.
The company also communicated with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission in 2023 using a Bitmain email address and the name Xiamen Sophgo Technologies Ltd.
In 2021, prosecutors raided Bitmain's operations in Taiwan and accused two Bitmain affiliates of illegally recruiting Taiwanese semiconductor engineers and illegally conducting research and development activities, according to a statement by the New Taipei prosecutors office.
Four Taiwanese defendants pleaded guilty and were given fines, according to the statement.
Sophgo's website says it has research and development centers in more than 10 cities in China and other countries.
[reuters]
Up to 50% of twins develop their own communication pattern with one another. Most lose it over time, but for the Youlden twins it has become a normal way of communicating.
Twins Matthew and Michael Youlden speak 25 languages each. The 26th is Umeri, which they don't include in their tally.
If you've not heard of Umeri, there's good reason for that. Michael and Matthew are the only two people who speak, read and write it, having created it themselves as children.
The brothers insist Umeri isn't an intentionally secret language.
"Umeri isn't ever reduced to a language used to keep things private," they say in an email. "It definitely has a very sentimental value to us, as it reflects the deep bond we share as identical twins."
An estimated 30-50% of twins develop a shared language or particular communication pattern that is only comprehensible to them, known as cryptophasia. The term translates directly from Greek as secret speech.
Nancy Segal, director of the Twin Studies Center at California State University, believes there are now better and more nuanced words for the phenomenon, and prefers to use "private speech". In her book Twin Mythconceptions, Segal also uses the phrase "shared verbal understanding" to refer to speech used within the pair.
"Based on available studies, it is safe to say that about 40% of twin toddlers engage in some form of 'twin-speak'," writes Segal. "But that figure does not convey just how complex twins' language development turns out to be."
Umeri is now written using the Latin alphabet, though the Youlden twins tried to design their own alphabet for the language
Roy Johannink from the Netherlands is father to teenage twins Merle and Stijn. Thirteen years ago, when they were babies, he took a video of them babbling to one another and shared it on YouTube. To date, their conversation has had over 30 million views. Johannink happened to have his camera on hand at the moment the two first began to verbally interact with each other.
"I was a little surprised that they saw each other," remembers Johannink. "They thought: 'Hey, I'm not alone in this moment. There's another one of me! It's us against the world.'"
Segal explains that like Merle and Stijn (who went on to lose their shared language when they learnt Dutch), most twins outgrow their private words as they gain more exposure to other people beyond the home.
But for the Youlden twins, this wasn't the case. They didn't outgrow their language. Quite the contrary, they enriched and perfected it over the years.
Matthew and Michael Youlden/ SuperpolyglotbrosBorn and raised in Manchester in the UK, the Youlden twins grew up surrounded by different ethnicities and cultures, fostering a love of languages.
Memories of when Umeri first began are hazy, but the brothers remember their grandfather being confused when as pre-schoolers, the two would share a joke between themselves he would not understand.
Then came their first family holiday abroad, at the age of eight. They were headed to Spain and decided they were going to learn Spanish, convinced that if they didn't, they'd struggle to order ice cream. Armed with a dictionary and with little understanding of how the grammar worked, they began to translate phrases word for word from English into Spanish. Later they took on Italian, and then turned their attention to learning Scandinavian languages. Pooling together various grammatical elements of all the languages they had studied, the brothers realised Umeri could actually become a fully-fledged language itself.
This chimes with Segal's observations. According to her, in general, "twins do not invent a new language, they tend to produce atypical forms of the language they are exposed to. Even though it's unintelligible, they still direct it to other people".
The Youlden twins began to standardise and codify Umeri. At one point, they even tried to design their own alphabet but realised (when they got their first computer) it would be of little use considering there was no Umeri font. Umeri is now written using the Latin alphabet.
Preserving a language spoken by few people comes with its own challenges, however.
"Twins have this shared language, that at some point they stop using, as if they feel ashamed of it," says Matthew. "This is also not something unique to twin languages."
Anyone speaking a minority language – meaning a language not shared by much of the rest of society – may grow shy of speaking it, "especially if you are raised with a minority language where you are maybe ostracised or looked at funnily at school," he says. "We thankfully never had that [reaction from others]." On the contrary, in the Youlden home, their parents never saw the development of Umeri between the brothers as a negative thing.
LET'S TALK
Let's Talk is a BBC series exploring the wonder and mystery of languages.
When the brothers would swerve off to converse in their own language when with extended family, the response tended to be "they're off doing the language thing again", recalls Matthew.
Karen Thorpe is a specialist in child development, education and care research at the Queensland Brain Institute at the University of Queensland. She has in previous roles extensively studied language development in twins.
"For me, it's about a very close relationship," she says. "Rather than seeing it as something strange and unusual, private language is really about a beautiful thing that humans do when they're very, very close to one another. But is that exclusive to twins? I don't think so. I think it's exclusive to very special, close relationships."
She also regards it as a normal development feature. As she put it in a 2010 research paper: "It is simply that young children who are just beginning to speak tend to understand each other rather better than do their parents or other adults."
For others, such as the Youldens, the languages are a combination of closeness and intellectual curiosity, though Thorpe says this long-term, conscious development of a private language is relatively rare.
The Youlden twins keep inventing new words to keep up with modern life – whether it's 'iPad' or 'lightning cable'
There are limited case studies available on cryptophasia – or "twin language" – and some of the most well-known are rooted in psychiatry.
June and Jennifer Gibbons are one such example. The Bajan-born twins grew up in Wales in the 1970s. As one of the sisters told the BBC, they had a speech impediment and were bullied for it at school. As a result, they stopped speaking to others and only spoke to one another.
To others, including their own parents, their speech sounded incomprehensible. At 19, after being arrested for crimes including arson and theft, they were sent to Broadmoor, a high security psychiatric hospital in England, and became the youngest female patients there. "We were desperate, we were trapped in our twinship and trapped in that language, we tried everything to separate ourselves," said June in a BBC podcast about their lives.
Most twins forget any language they might have shared uniquely with one another as toddlers, Thorpe says, but some do retain certain words and non-verbal communication traits such as gestures. "They might not have something that we would call an exclusive language, but they do have something that's quite special," says Thorpe.
Getty ImagesHer work has also found however that twins are mildly more at risk of language delay, but having a private language does not necessarily contribute to this. Language delay is more likely associated with twins having less individual attention from adults, research suggests. Prematurity, pregnancy and birth complications can also play a part.
"One thing I tell parents is: make sure you talk to your children one at a time, so that they have exposure to language," recommends Segal. "One problem with twins is that parents tend to leave them alone because they entertain each other, but then they don't have adult language models."
For the Youlden twins, creating Umeri has been nothing but a positive experience. The language is constantly developing as the brothers think of new words for things that have emerged with modern day life. "Whether it's 'iPad' or 'lightning cable' – all of these are words that didn't exist 20 or 30 years ago," says Matthew.
They now run their own language coaching company supporting individuals, educational institutions and private companies with language learning. Michael lives in Grand Canaria and Matthew in the Basque Country. They still converse with one another in Umeri.
They don't plan to pass down the language to any children they may have in the future, however, finding it strange to share the language with someone else.
"It's a unique language spoken by two people," says Michael. "It's one of those things that unfortunately does have an expiry date to it."
[BBC]
President Bola Tinubu has extended his warmest congratulations to President Luong Cuong of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam on his historic election to the esteemed leadership position by the parliament.
Cuong, 67, has served in the Vietnamese army for over 40 years and has been a Politburo member since 2021.
The president, in a release issued on Sunday by his Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, welcomed President Cuong’s post-election promise to promote Vietnam “as a friend, a trusted partner, an active and responsible member of the international community”.
President Tinubu reaffirmed that the enduring warmth and friendliness of the relations between Nigeria and Vietnam, as evidenced by the steady growth in trade and cultural exchange, are rooted in a shared commitment to fostering a more peaceful world.
The president assured the Vietnamese leader of Nigeria’s commitment to improving bilateral relations across various sectors, including trade, agriculture, food production, education and cultural and technological exchange.
President Tinubu hoped for President Cuong’s successful leadership in serving his people and humanity.
[Thisday]
Dr. Olutoke Abraham, a resident doctor at the Federal Medical Center in Abeokuta, has challenged the widespread belief that low sexual activity contributes to prostate cancer.
Speaking at a medical outreach organized by the Rotary Club for traders at Abeokuta’s Tarmac Phone Village, Abraham emphasized that age, smoking, and obesity—not sexual activity—are significant factors increasing the likelihood of developing prostate cancer, especially among African men aged 50 and above.
“There is a general myth suggesting that either reduced or increased sexual activity could cause prostate cancer, but this is simply untrue,” Abraham clarified, underscoring the lack of scientific backing for such claims.
“Instead, research consistently shows that risk factors like age, smoking, and obesity have stronger correlations with prostate cancer.”
He further noted that prostate cancer is now the most prevalent cancer among Nigerian men, accounting for 11% of all cancers affecting men in the country. This statistic, he stressed, highlights the urgent need for regular health screenings.
Dr. Abraham urged middle-aged and older men to prioritize their health by routinely visiting hospitals for preventive checkups, pointing out that men in Nigeria tend to seek medical care less frequently than women.
“Studies show that women generally demonstrate better health-seeking behavior than men, who often neglect their health in favor of work or caring for family members,” he explained. This trend, Abraham warned, may lead to delayed diagnoses and poorer health outcomes for men.
He recommended that men over 50 undergo regular evaluations, including blood pressure, blood sugar, and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) tests. These screenings, he said, are crucial for detecting prostate cancer in its early stages before it spreads to the bones, spine, or other organs.
“Early detection is key,” Abraham emphasized. “If prostate cancer is caught early, it can be effectively managed or even removed to prevent serious complications.”
With prostate cancer on the rise in Nigeria, Abraham’s message serves as a reminder of the importance of medical awareness and proactive health measures, especially among men at higher risk.
[NationalDaily]
No additional bodies from the wreckage of the helicopter that crashed on October 24, 2024, has been found, the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has stated.
In a statement Sunday, Olufemi Soneye, the Chief Corporate Communications Officer, stated that search was still ongoing.
Soneye said: “The NNPC Ltd wishes to announce that beyond the three bodies found in the ill-fated helicopter operated by East Winds Aviation that crashed on Thursday in Port Harcourt, no other bodies have been recovered.”
He said the company further noted that intensified search and rescue operations for the remaining bodies along with relevant authorities were still ongoing. “Once again, our hearts and prayers are with family members of this unfortunate incident.”
It will be recalled that at about 11:22am on the fateful day, the NNPCL announced it lost contact with the Helicopter – Registration Number: 5NBQG, engaged by NNPC Limited, that took off from Port Harcourt NAF Base en-route the FPSO – NUIMS ANTAN. The helicopter was operated by East Winds Aviation.
The NNPL said that there were eight persons on board (six passengers and two crew members), saying the appropriate authorities had been contacted, including the Ministry of Aviation. It was at that point that the three bodies were announced as found.
[BusinessDay]
The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Yemi Cardoso, has announced a reduction in market volatility, attributing it to the foreign exchange reforms undertaken by the apex bank.
Cardoso disclosed this during a press briefing in Washington, USA, following meetings with stakeholders from the World Bank.
He explained that the bank’s bold and unconventional reforms have boosted foreign exchange supply and increased remittance inflows into the country.
Additionally, he highlighted that the bank has curtailed arbitrage and speculative activities, while also eliminating the front-loading of foreign exchange demand.
“Since assumption of office a year ago, we’ve been focused on how to address inflationary concerns, restore investors confidence in financial markets and stabilizing the exchange rate. Enhancing the financial system, fostering financial inclusion and enhancing transparency in our monetary policy decisions and communication.
“We embarked upon bold and necessary reforms to return to the path of monetary policy orthodoxy as well as removed observed distortion in the foreign exchange market. Our efforts have yielded significant progress as volatility in the foreign exchange market has abated immeasurably and remittances have also increased significantly.
“We’ve achieved increased transparency and improved overall supply in the foreign exchange market, leading to reduced arbitrage, speculative activities and eliminated front loading of foreign exchange demand,” Cardoso stated.
Bank Recapitalization Policy
Cardoso also commented on the CBN’s recapitalization policy for deposit money banks.
According to the apex bank governor, the initiative aims to support a N1 trillion economy by 2030.
However, he acknowledged that much work remains to be done, stressing the importance of maintaining and consolidating current progress through an efficient market system and the deepening of financial inclusion.
“The CBN recapitalization policy has prompted deposit money banks to strengthen their financial position, a process expected to result in a more robust and resilient banking sector by March 2026. The exercise is meant to support the realization of the N1 trillion economy by 2030.
“We recognize that much is still needed to be done to fully achieve our goals. Our paths forward include consolidating and sailing current progress through an efficient market system and deepening financial and economic inclusion, particularly for small businesses, households, women and young people in Nigeria.
“By leveraging smarter technology and remote banking solutions, we aim to reduce transaction cost and expand financial access, ensuring that every Nigerian, regardless of location or demographics, can meaningfully participate in our involving financial system,” Cardoso said.
What you should know
Since last year, Nigeria has faced currency fluctuations in the foreign exchange market, triggering widespread instability across all sectors of the economy.
- At the height of the crisis, the naira depreciated to as low as N1,900/$ against the dollar earlier this year.
- However, the currency rebounded to approximately N1,600/$ in September, maintaining a range of around N1,650 with signs of stability.
- In response, the CBN introduced several measures and directives to manage the currency, including crackdowns on the informal FX market, such as BDC operators, and the crypto market.
- This month, the naira has shown relative stability against the dollar, accompanied by a significant rise in foreign exchange inflows into the reserves.
[Nairametrics]
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Nigeria to deploy underwater drone as search continues for missing passengers, helicopter wreckage
Admin
The search for the wreckage of a private helicopter that crashed in Nigeria on Thursday will continue this morning, an official has said. The authorities also announced the deployment of an underwater drone to aid in the search.
PREMIUM TIMES reported that the Sikorsky SK76 helicopter crashed on Thursday after leaving Port Harcourt, Rivers State, with officials saying three bodies of the eight passengers were recovered.
“The incident, which occurred on Thursday, October 24, 2024, involved eight persons onboard and took place off the coast of Bonny Finima in the Atlantic Ocean,” Bimbo Oladeji, the spokesperson of the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) said in a statement shared by aviation minister Festus Keyamo on Sunday morning.
![Nigeria’s Aviation Minister, Festus Keyamo [PHOTO CREDIT: Festus Keyamo]](https://i0.wp.com/media.premiumtimesng.com/wp-content/files/2024/10/460737857_18454316647065165_3889990358294028266_n.jpg?resize=1069%2C714&ssl=1)
Mrs Oladeji said the search and rescue efforts would resume Sunday morning after they were suspended on Saturday “due to the loss of daylight.”
“As of 11:55 AM today (Saturday), divers began setting up and checking equipment to conduct an underwater search and recovery, followed by preliminary sweeping operations at 2:15 PM. However, by 4:30 PM, diving activities were suspended due to the loss of daylight. Recovery operations are set to resume tomorrow at 9:00 AM local time,” she wrote.
The spokesperson said no item from the crashed helicopter has been recovered.
“Despite extensive search efforts, no wreckage or critical components – such as the black box, Flight Data Recorder (FDR), or Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) – have yet been located due to the challenging conditions of the operating environment, limited visibility at depth and human divers’ operational constraints,” she said.
Mrs Oladeji said her agency would deploy an underwater drone in its search for the wreckage.
“To enhance recovery efforts, the NSIB is working to deploy a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) equipped to operate at depths of up to 1,000 meters. With its advanced cameras, sensors, and Tether Management System (TMS), the ROV will enable the NSIB team to conduct detailed surveys, collect environmental data, and capture critical evidence essential to understanding the cause of the incident,” she said.
Read the NSIB’s full statement below.
The Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) continued its recovery operation and investigation into the ditching of a Sikorsky SK76 helicopter, registration 5N BQG, operated by Eastwind Aviation. The incident, which occurred on Thursday, October 24, 2024, involved eight persons onboard and took place off the coast of Bonny Finima in the Atlantic Ocean.
As of 11:55 AM today, divers began setting up and checking equipment to conduct an underwater search and recovery, followed by preliminary sweeping operations at 2:15 PM. However, by 4:30 PM, diving activities were suspended due to the loss of daylight. Recovery operations are set to resume tomorrow at 9:00 AM local time. Despite extensive search efforts, no wreckage or critical components – such as the black box, Flight Data Recorder (FDR), or Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) – have yet been located due to the challenging conditions of the operating environment, limited visibility at depth and human divers’ operational constraints.
To enhance recovery efforts, the NSIB is working to deploy a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) equipped to operate at depths of up to 1,000 meters. With its advanced cameras, sensors, and Tether Management System (TMS), the ROV will enable the NSIB team to conduct detailed surveys, collect environmental data, and capture critical evidence essential to understanding the cause of the incident. The ROV’s capacity for close inspections and light manipulation tasks will be invaluable in such deep-water environments, where it will aid in assessing wreckage conditions, gathering vital data, and developing insights into potential causes.
Captain Alex Badeh Jr., Director General of the NSIB, further expressed his sympathies to the loved ones of those affected, stating, “Our heartfelt condolences go out to the families and friends of the crew and passengers involved in this tragic event. We recognize the depth of this loss, and I assure you that all efforts are fully underway. Our priority is to recover and analyze all necessary data to bring clarity to the families and the nation.”
The NSIB is collaborating closely with an amalgamated team of search, rescue, and recovery units comprising various government agencies and private entities. The Bureau urges the public to avoid speculation, emphasizing the importance of respecting the integrity of the recovery and investigation as they progress.
The Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau remains steadfast in its commitment to transparency and accountability, continually working to enhance transportation safety across Nigeria.
Bimbo Olawumi Oladeji
Director, Public Affairs and Family Assistance,
Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau
Former Big Brother Naija housemate cum actor, Adeolu Okusaga, better known as Saga, has described his colleague, Liquorose, as his very good friend.
Naija News reports that there have been speculations online that Saga and Liquorose are dating due to their recent film reenactments.
However, in an interview with Punch, the reality TV star attributed his chemistry with Liquorose to their off-screen friendship.
He said, “Liquorose is my very good friend. We are both super talented and that is what I want to put out there. A lot of people don’t like to brag about themselves but I am going to brag about myself. I am a very talented actor and Liquorose is a great actress as well. Coming together, we create chemistry at the snap of a finger.
“Working with her is so easy and seamless. Most of those shoots take shorter time than people might imagine. The fact that Liquor is my friend in real life makes it easier for us to have an onscreen connection that works for the camera. Liquorose and I are working on a miniseries that we will be giving information on soon.”
Speaking on his recent delve into the Nollywood industry, Saga stated that he is eager to explore a wider range of characters.
He added, “I want to play action roles; be a father, scientist, pastor, or even delve into science fiction. I have so much more to give. If I am cast for romantic roles right now, I’ll make the most of it. But, when the opportunity comes to show a different side of me, I’m also ready.”
[NaijaNews]
The operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on Friday October 25, raided the Igbo-Igunuko shrine, located at the Alfa Beach, Ajah, where jumbo bags of Ghanaian Loud, a strain of cannabis, weighing 2,760kg were recovered and two suspects: Gbenga Abiodun and Sunday Abiodun wre arrested.
The Agency’s Spokesperson, Mr Femi Babafemi in a statement on Sunday said another suspect, Ademola Oyelakin was also arrested same day with 770kg of the same psychoactive substance along Lagos-Ibadan expressway.
A total of 11,786 pills of tramadol, molly, rohypnol and diazepam as well as 64 bottles of codeine syrup were recovered from the underground storage a suspect, Muhammad Warnos Abdullahi dug in his bedroom at Marwa Coastal road, Lekki Phase 1 Lagos when NDLEA officers raided his home on Friday October 25,
The suspect dug the illicit drug storage deep in his room, covered it with padlocked iron slate, a rug and then put his mattress on top to avoid detection.
While in Plateau, a suspect Fadan Bindom, 39, was arrested at Pilgani village in possession of 65.85kg cannabis and 18 grams of tramadol, while another suspect Sunday Agbata, 42, was nabbed at Pavwei – Rayfield Jos South LGA with 5,830 tablets and ampoules of bromazepam, diazepam and pentazocine injection on Wednesday 23rd October.
A major distributor of illicit drugs in FCT Abuja, Umar Muhammed, 40, was on Monday October 21, nabbed following the earlier seizure of a consignment of 198.5kg cannabis linked to him at Wuse market park.
In Edo state, NDLEA operatives recovered 640kg cannabis concealed in 80 jumbo bags of fresh vegetables at Ewu junction, Irrua, Esan Central LGA and arrested a suspect, Austin Oruamen, 27, while another suspect Adereti Kazeem, 35, was nabbed with 200 blocks of cannabis weighing 133kg at Obalayan, Ile-Ife, Osun state on Thursday 24th October.
With the same vigour, Commands and formations of the Agency across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse, WADA, sensitization activities to schools, worship centres, work places and communities among others in the past week.
These include: WADA sensitisation lecture to students and staff of Government Girls Secondary School, Tambuwal, Sokoto; St. Mary College, Awka, Anambra state; Prime Rose Model Private College, Saki, Oyo state; Community Model Arabic College, Malumfashi, Katsina state; Community Junior Secondary School, Rumuomasi, Rivers state; and WADA advocacy lecture to Rugar Alhaji Manu Unguwan Sullubawa, Gombi, Adamawa state, among others.
[newtelegraphng]
Speaker of the Borno State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Abdulkarim Lawan, has said the life of Vice-President Kashim Shettima is at risk as a result of the “faulty” presidential aircraft he uses to represent President Bola Tinubu in official engagements across the globe.
He said this after Nigeria’s number two citizen cancelled his trip to the Commonwealth Summit in Samoa over an incident at an airport in New York, United States.
According to the presidency, Shettima could not proceed to Samoa because a foreign object hit his plane during a stopover at JFK Airport in New York.
Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the president on Information and Startegy, had said some parts of the aircraft, including the windscreen of the cockpit, was damaged during the incident.
Commenting on the situation in a statement issued in Maiduguri, Borno State capital, on Sunday, Lawan called on the Federal Government to get Shettima a new aircraft to avoid any tragedy.
He said the aircraft designated to the Vice President has had several incidents in recent times.
“I want to sympathize with the Nigerian Government, especially the office of the Vice President, his crew and staff over the unfortunate incident at JFK Airport in New York, U.S.A.”
“I also express my gratitude to Allah (God) for saving the precious life of our dear Vice President Senator Kashim Shettima and those on board the ill- fated VP’s plane, even as I urge the Nigerian government to demand a thorough and timely investigation from the United States government over the incident that affected Vice President Kashim Shettima’s plane at one of the most secure spots in the World.
“The life of the Vice President, and that of his crew/officials stand at risk while using the old and faulty presidential aircraft. Therefore, there is the urgent need to acquire a new aircraft to Senator Kashim Shettima so as to avoid these recurrence of air mishaps,” he said.
Early this year, the House of Representatives Committee on National Security and Intelligence mandated the Federal Government to acquire new aircraft for Tinubu and Shettima, but the presidency came under intense public scrutiny and in the end, only that of Tinubu was acquired.
[DailyTrust]