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Some stakeholders have expressed concern over the possible resolution of the Federal Government and ASUU impasse even as some state universities are pulling out of the strike.
The stakeholders expressed the concern in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja on Tuesday.
They state universities that pulled out of the strike might likely stand the risk of losing some benefits from the Federal Government and ASUU.
Prof. Stephen Onah, the former Executive Director, National Mathematical Centre said the struggle of ASUU was for public universities of which state universities were part of.
“If state universities pull out, the Federal Government will eventually withdraw from using the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETfund) to support them.
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“Education is in concurrent list and ASUU as a body argued for the state’s universities to be included in TETfund funding at inception.
“State universities will end up losing more than ASUU as a body.
Most State governors are very conscious of this fact.
“The ASUU will obviously suffer a temporary setback,” Onah said.
Similarly, Dr Olatunji Jekayinfa, a Research Fellow, National Mathematical Centre said the inability of the Federal Government and ASUU to agree and end the strike was a source of worry to well-meaning Nigerians.
Jekayinfa said that for a period of more than seven months, the strike had remained unabated “and is now a national disgrace’’.
“Some states ASUU are calling off the strike and resuming academic activities.
“The implication of this is that students of state universities will be back to school and will have advantage over Federal universities students.
“But in the contrary, state university lecturers may be the overall losers at the end of the day.
“Especially if the state governments are incapacitated to provide for their lecturers the benefits that the Federal university lecturers stand to enjoy after the strike,” he said.
Jekayinfa said that with time and no matter how long, the issue would be resolved and the striking lecturers would go back to classrooms.
He, however, said that there might be a problem since the negotiations all along had been between the Federal Government and ASUU with exclusion of the state ASUU.
He, therefore, hoped that an end to the strike would come soonest to avert further damage to the public university education in the country.
Meanwhile, an Economist, Mr Jeffrey Egbo commended state universities that had pulled out of the on-going ASUU strike, while urging others to take a queue.
According to Egbo, it is unnecessary for ASUU to allow their interest to becloud the interest of Nigerian students.
“Even though their fight may be for a good cause, they have gone too far on the quest not considering the students at the receiving end.
“I am happy some schools are already pulling out, which means some of our children will go back to school pending when the rest will also join them.
“Also, government and all stakeholders concerned should speedily look into this matter and resolve it because it is not in the interest of the nation,” he added.
An insurance expert, Mr Ekerete Gam-Ikon described the strike by ASUU as “a nauseating history and painful existence for all stakeholders’’.
Ikon said that the negative impact of the strike would be revealed in 10 to 20 years from now when those who ought to be graduates would be in position to determine the future.
He urged relevant authorities to focus on the present bearing in mind its implications in the future of the Nigerian youth.
nanews.
NewsSourceCredit: NAN
After a nervous start, the Department of the Interior's (DHA) collaborative effort with the Department of Employment and Labor to recruit 10,000 unemployed young graduates to digitize their paper civic records (DHA) has so far received 85,820 applications and 23,374 have qualified to be evaluated and interviewed.
Esther Tloane, Senior Director of the Department of Employment and Labour: Employer Services, said multiple teams at Job Centers and provincial offices were working hard to screen, verify and ensure qualified candidates are shortlisted ahead of expected interviews.
let them start soon.
The recruitment of the 10,000 unemployed young graduates followed the announcement by President Cyril Ramaphosa during the State of the Union address in February 2022 that “the Department of the Interior will recruit 10,000 unemployed young graduates for the digitization of their civic records on paper, improving their skills and contributing to the modernization of citizen services” through the Presidential Employment Stimulus (PES).
Launching the contracting project on August 11, Home Secretary Aaron Motsoaledi said the Department has more than 350 million paper civic records relating to births, marriages, deaths and amendments.
The category of records dates back to 1895, which requires care and reliable systems that have tolerance for digitization purposes.
These records are found in all provinces and the bulk of which are in Gauteng, North West and Western Cape. The project is expected to last for a period of three (3) years, from November 2022 to October 2025.
The recruitment campaign will be divided into three phases: Phase 1: will see the recruitment of the first promotion of 2,000 young people unemployed graduates.
This cohort will take office on November 1, 2022.
Phase 2 will see a new recruitment of 4,000 young unemployed graduates.
This cohort will take office in January 2023.
Phase 3 will see a new and final hire of 4,000 unemployed young graduates.
This cohort will take up their duties in April 2023.
Successful young people will receive a stipend ranging from R5,000 for entry level positions to R9,500 for help desk level positions and R14,250 for manager level positions.
This cohort must sign a three-year contract linked to the duration of the project.
Ms. Tloane said that the Department was putting the finishing touches on the process that led to interviews and placements.
She said that to date the Department has received 7,739 inquiries related to the digitization project and 7,523 have been answered.
“In advancing equity, however, I am concerned that we are receiving few applicants from people with disabilities”; she said.
Unemployed youth must be qualified in Information Technology; Management of Documents, Information and Records, obtained from Higher Education Institutions (Universities, Technological Universities, TVETs).
Successful applicants will be subject to suitability checks (citizenship, credit, criminal, and qualification checks) (looks like we'll be doing this feature).
DHA has partnered with the Department of Employment and Labor to use the Department's online recruitment platform called Employment Services South Africa (ESSA).
Potential candidates who meet the criteria should register on the ESSA (South African Employment System) recruitment platform found on the Department's website at www.labour.gov.za and those without internet access should visit the nearest office (Centro Laboral) of the Department of Employment and Labor.
Candidates who are already registered with ESSA do not have to visit Job Centers and can apply for these positions online.
Society for the Promotion of Peoples Right, a Non Governmental Organisation (NGO), has called on FCT residents to resist from activities that could worsen climate and other environmental pollution.
Mr Williams Osaze, the president of the organisation made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Tuesday in Abuja.
Osaze said that the organisation had an Environmental Risk Assessment (ERA) exercise in the FCT and discovered that Abuja was highly polluted, adding that the situation could affect the health of the people.
He said that Nigeria needed urgent intervention to tackle environmental crisis, through involving critical measures that would entrench and sustain climate action in the country.
According to Osaze, the residents and Nigerians as well should support the government to mitigate climate change and other environmental issues.
“It is time for us to act.
It is time to protect, preserve, conserve and promote our environment.
Climate change has become a threat to our environment and we cannot continue keeping quiet.
“We must take conscious and deliberate steps to reverse this menace as over millions of used plastics get into the environment as they are discarded immediately after used.
“It is time to change how we produce, consume and dispose of the plastic we use,’’ he said.
Osaze said that improper waste disposal, deforestation, gas emission and other environmental activities had caused extreme climate change thereby exposing life to the vagaries of nature.
He said that effective sensitisation of various communities on the impact of environmental crisis and benefit of plastic waste reduction through recycling would help to address the menaces.
Osaze expressed worry over nonchalance of some people toward waste recycling and management, adding that Nigerians should voluntarily take action by embracing the reuse of plastic system.
“Waste recycling, especially, plastic and nylon materials will take away 50 per cent of environmental pollution and reduce flooding in the area,’’ he said.
The president said that plastic pollution was caused by people`s negligence, adding that the waste were mainly generated from households.
He urged government at all levels; relevant stakeholders and individuals to collaborate and urgently implement programmes that would address environmental crisis in the country.
NewsSourceCredit: NAN
Morocco and Jordan have agreed to hold the Joint High Commission meeting between the two countries as soon as possible, Minister for Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans Abroad, Nasser Bourita, said Monday in Amman. In a joint press conference held after his talks with Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, Bourita said that a forum of Moroccan and Jordanian businessmen will also be held in parallel to this meeting to discuss ways of joint action and investment in Both countries. or in other regions, including the African continent, stressing the importance of removing all obstacles to cooperation between businessmen of the two kingdoms, including the facilitation of the granting of visas. In this context, he said that practical measures will soon be taken to resolve all these problems, in addition to the issue of air and maritime transport, since it is considered essential to strengthen cooperation and trade between the two countries. Recalling the exceptional relations between the two kingdoms under the leadership of HM King Mohammed VI and his brother HM King Abdullah II, Bourita said that these ties have all the bases to reach the level of a strategic partnership in all the areas. Under the leadership of the two Heads of State, the two kingdoms have achieved a lot in the framework of political coordination and bilateral cooperation, the Moroccan minister stressed. “Today what is imperative is to implement the main reference of this relationship, namely the Joint Communiqué issued at the end of the meeting of the leaders of the two countries at the end of March in Casablanca in 2019, to give more economic and humanitarian content. to these ties,” he said. These talks, held on the eve of the meeting of the Council of the League of Arab States at the level of foreign ministers, focused on ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation in various areas and activate joint Arab action in the service of Arab causes. , mainly between which is the Palestinian question.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it is working towards publishing a comprehensive list of registered voters in Nigeria, ahead of 2023 poll.
The INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, said this at the stakeholders’ validation meeting for the 2022 revised framework and regulations for voting by Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Abuja on Tuesday.
Yakubu said that the list would integrate the fresh voters registered at the just concluded Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) to the existing register of over 84 million voters.
He faulted claim by a section of the civil society groups that INEC was not willing to display the register.
“At a media briefing yesterday, the commission was accused of failure to display the voters’ register as provided by Section 19(1) of the Electoral Act 2022. This claim is incorrect.
“What the commission displThird Quarter).
He said that a comprehensive schedule of the CVR and the display of the register was shared with stakeholders at the commission’s quarterly meeting just before the inception of the exercise in June 2021.
“We wish to assure Nigerians that the commission will display the comprehensive register in all the 8,809 wards and 774 local government councils nationwide as envisaged in Section 19(1) of the Electoral Act, 2022.
“This will integrate fresh voters registered under the last CVR to the existing register of over 84 million voters.
“The date will be announced as soon the commission completes the ongoing Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) to weed out all as well as ineligible registrants.
“We appeal to some of our friends in civil society organisations to be guided accordingly,” Yakubu said.
NewsSourceCredit: NAN
Malaysian Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah on Tuesday spoke highly of the economic ties with China and encouraged sharing of cutting-edge technologies between the countries.
At the opening ceremony of the 2022 China Smart Industry Trade Exhibition and Forum, the minister expressed gratitude to China for its contribution to Malaysia’s economic development.
Speaking of China’s development in high-tech and digital economy, Saifuddin said China is “a leading powerhouse” not only in innovation but also in the application of technology.
In a congratulatory message to this exhibition, the Malaysian foreign minister said, “It is our hope that the entrepreneurs from China, through this trade exhibition, will use this networking platform to collaborate with Malaysian partners and vice versa.
”
In his speech at the ceremony, Chinese Ambassador to Malaysia Ouyang Yujing said that science, technology and innovation cooperation remained an important part of China-Malaysia bilateral relations and has built up strong momentum.
He said in the post-COVID-19 era, China would work with Malaysia to improve cooperation in application of high-tech in smart manufacturing, explore new cooperation areas, improve people’s life quality, and accelerate the country’s industrial transformation.
Ouyang said this exhibition would deepen the mutual understanding between Chinese and Malaysian technology companies, and would create a solid foundation for comprehensive and multilevel cooperation in the future.
The 2022 China Smart Industry Trade Exhibition and Forum attracted around 60 Chinese and Malaysian technology companies and organisations.
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NewsSourceCredit: NAN
Today, the Western Cape Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Ivan Meyer, returned from Maputo, Mozambique, where he led a trade mission from the Western Cape to the 57th FACIM trade show.
FACIM is a fair that attracts more than 2,500 exhibitors from 20 countries and 50,000 visitors.
Meyer commented that FACIM allowed exhibitors and visitors to interact through thematic seminars and meetings in B2B format.
Meyer: "The Western Cape African Agricultural Strategy aims to support agricultural entrepreneurs seeking access to African markets.
Mozambique offers a significant export market opportunity for a wide range of goods and services from the Western Cape. For example, our wines are doing exceptionally well Sold in all major retailers and served in Maputo restaurants For this reason, our delegation aimed to promote investment and business opportunities and establish partnerships in the current context of economic recovery ".
Meyer continued, "Wesgro, the Western Cape's tourism, trade and investment agency, organized a very successful trade mission to Maputo.
I was impressed with our delegation.
They worked hard to close trade deals with their counterparts in Maputo.
In doing so, Western Los Cape entrepreneurs gave impetus to our African agricultural strategy.
As a result, they are ready to grow their business footprint in Africa."
One such entrepreneur is Denise Stubbs, CEO of Thokozani Wines.
Stubbs said: "This was the most attractive and successful exhibition I have ever attended.
My aim was to secure an importer and distributor in Mozambique.
So I networked a lot, had many meetings and came to an agreement to bring 3000 bottles of Thokozani Spumante to Maputo.
Mission accomplished".
"Passion takes you a long way if you believe in your product," added Stubbs.
Meyer further notes that his visit to the port of Maputo was enlightening.
Meyer: "I was very impressed with the smooth running of the Port of Maputo.
The management team is excellent and the results speak for themselves.
Efficiency and productivity are critical indicators of the Port of Maputo's operating model," said Meyer.
"I also met with the Maputo Provincial Department of Agriculture.
We share our agricultural technology, such as smart pen technology and our digital tractor tracking system, with our colleagues from the Maputo Provincial Government.
"We have agreed to continue the commitments bilateral meetings through virtual technical meetings and a visit to the Western Cape Department of Agriculture,” concluded Meyer.
The Inter Party Advissory Council (IPAC) says Nigeria should learn from the emergence of Liz Truss as the new UK Prime Minister and shun do-or-die and bitter politics.
The News Agency of Nigeria recalls that the 47-year-old Truss was on Monday, voted as the new Prime Minister of UK.
The IPAC Chairman in Lagos State, Mr Olusegun Mobolaji told NAN on Tuesday that Nigeria, being the most populous African country must take some lessons from leadership succession in UK.
“Nigeria has a lot to learn both from other neighbouring African countries around us and also from other countries like UK.
“The reason why we are a country is for us to be able to have a standard.
We may not be what we want to be at a go, but we should be able to learn from other places.
“What happened seamlessly in UK in choosing their Prime Minister should teach politicians that public office is no one’s property that should become a do-or-die thing or bitter fight.
“It is a public office and it has to do with selfless service, not selfish one,” the IPAC boss said.
He said that the outgone UK prime minister, Moris Johnson, resigned willingly in July, over a particular scandal in his government and such should be instructive to disciplined leaders.
Mobolaji said: “Considering the age of Truss, it is instructive for Nigeria to give room for youths and women to build this country.
“It is not about how long you have been there, it is about the ability, capability, qualification and merit.
It is about putting the round peg in the round hole.
“It’s about doing the right thing without favouritsm and tribalism.
We need more of young, brilliant, highly cerebral young men and women to be in place of leadership.
”
He noted that a woman could do better than a man, saying “that one is a woman is not a limitation, it doesn’t mean she can’t do better.
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Mobolaji said that leadership should not be about gender or who had done something for somebody before, but about capacity, ability, and what people needed and deserved.
NAN reports that Truss is the third UK female prime minister following Margaret Thatcher and Theresa May.
Before her emergence as Tory leader and British PM, Truss was UK’s secretary of state for foreign, commonwealth and development affairs since 2021 and minister for women and equalities since 2019.
She emerged as the new UK prime of the United Kingdom’s Conservative Party, after defeating her rival, Rishi Sunak, in a Tory vote where she polled 81,326 votes to beat Sunak who polled 60,399 votes.
NewsSourceCredit: NAN
President Cyril Ramaphosa will deliver the keynote address at the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) Council of Mayors Conference at the East London International Convention Center in the Eastern Cape on Thursday 8 September 2022.
Since its formation in 2016, the SALGA Council of Mayors has brought together mayors from across the country to deliberate and collaborate on issues related to service provision, local governance, and the strengthening of municipalities to carry out their constitutional mandate.
On September 8-9, 2022, the Council of Mayors will be sworn in by new members who have become local government leaders since the November 2021 local government elections.
The Council of Mayors acts as a consultative forum for the development of local government positions on policies and legislation that impact local government.
This framework also identifies the political and legislative issues that SALGA must include in its strategic, advocacy and lobbying commitments.
This collective of mayors identifies the challenges facing the executive in municipalities and proposes solutions and approaches to address the prevailing challenges facing local government.
President Ramaphosa will deliver the keynote address at the opening session of the conference under the theme "The Role of Mayors in Improving Good Governance and Sustainability".
This commitment follows the South African Human Rights Commission's National Conference on Local Governance, which the President addressed several days ago on local government accountability, service delivery and human rights.
Members of the national executive will join the mayors' conference to discuss the progress of the transition after the 2021 elections; local government finances; financial management and municipal financial recovery; opportunities for the development of human settlements; safe and secure communities; the rural roads program, the classification and proclamation of roads and the corresponding financing, as well as the state of water, sanitation and waste management.
The Nigerian Women Trust Fund (NWTF), in collaboration with the
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), have engaged critical stakeholders on effective and gender mainstreaming that will promote equality in the electoral space.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the engagement meeting for critical stakeholders in Oyo State, held at Owu Crown Hotel in Ibadan, was to enhance more women participation in Nigeria politics ahead of the 2023 elections.
In his goodwill message, Mr Abiodun Amosun, who represented the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Oyo, said the meeting was a pre-assessment on Gender and Election Watch Programme.
Amosun said the programme was timely and historic, “in the sense that general elections is around the corner, coupled with the fact that INEC accorded high level priority to mainstreaming gender considerations across all areas of its activities”.
He explained that the commission embarked on the review of its Gender Policy for 2021-2025, in line with the commission’s Strategic Plan 2022-2026, geared toward consolidating free, fair, credible and inclusive elections in the country.
According to him, the outcomes of the review process informed the commission’s decision to establish a new department, known as Gender and Inclusivity, with the task of raising awareness on gender sensitivity and improving gender equity.
On the pre-assessment meeting, the Administrative Secretary, said the Election Watch Programme was one of the key performance indicators for pursuing and advancing gender concerns in all electoral activities.
Amosun said the and how to identify anticipated participants for the next Gender Election Watch Programme would be looked into at the meeting.
“This would be geared toward enhancing women participation; the percentage of women in politics still remains very low and not too encouraging,” he said.
On the meeting’s objectives, Mrs Victoria Eta-Messi, the Deputy Director, Gender Relations, INEC in Abuja, said: “It is basically to sensitise the selected state offices of the commission on intervention that the Nigerian Women Trust Fund intend to do.
“With regards to gender mainstreaming ahead of 2023 general elections and beyond.
“With the European Union funding, Gender Election Watch is going to run for five years, but the main programme which is going to be implemented soonest, before the 2023 elections, is Gender and Election Watch.
“So, the first leg of the programme is the sensitisation of the eight selected states, where we will sensitise critical stakeholders on how to go about implementing activities of the programme that would ensure we have effective and equitable gender mainstreaming.
“We know that elections are under way in a couple of months and campaign would soon begin.
“So, there is going to be monitoring and observation of the campaign practices and processes with a gender lens from gender perspectives,” Eta-Messi explained.
She said that the programme would enable the stakeholders to have information required and what INEC and NWTF plan to do with regard to ensuring that there is increased women participation in 2023 election processes.
On her parts, the Programme Officer, NWTF, Ruth Manu, observed that the marginalisation of women in the nation’s political equation remains the central challenge of democratic governance.
According to her, some of the barriers to women’s participation in Nigeria politics are lack of effective government’ action to domesticate and implement International conventions that promote women’s equal participation in policy and governance processes.
“The systematic exclusion of women from leadership positions within political parties, education system and public spheres of representation, also media, provide less visibility for women in politics,” she said.
Manu further explained that the NWTF objectives were to contribute to the increase participation and greater inclusion of women in politics and pushing for legislation for women and gender to get to the mainstream politics.
She said the organisation was engaging INEC leadership, Women Societies, National Orientation Agency, traditional rulers religious leaders, political parties media and Civil Society Organisations to play their respective roles in actualising its objectives.
Manu urged all participants to ensure they carry out the awareness and sensitisation back to their members.
The programme officer said that this would enable them to be better informed on the needs for women to be more involved in politics.
The participants appreciated NWTF and INEC for the engagement, promising to do more in the sensitisation of the general public through their respective platforms.
NAN reports that theme of the one-day engagement was: “Women’s Political Participation, Inclusion and 2023 General Elections”.
NewsSourceCredit: NAN
