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PCNGi: Automobile CNG Attracted $491m Investments In Last 1 Year

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CNG Conversion

PCNGi: Automobile CNG Attracted $491m Investments In Last 1 Year

PCNGi: Automobile CNG attracted $491m investments in last 1 year. The Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative (PCNGi) says automobile CNG attracted $491 million (N760.64 billion) in private investments and generated 84,000 direct and indirect jobs over the past year.

Michael Oluwagbemi, PCNGi programme director, spoke on Monday while addressing State House correspondents at the fifth edition of ‘Meet the Press,’ organised by the presidential communications team at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja.

Oluwagbemi attributed the success to extensive stakeholder engagement and public awareness campaigns conducted between May and November 2024.

“We have attracted over $491 million of investments in the past year to AutoCNG, and we are very proud of it. This has created over 9,000 direct and 75,000 indirect jobs,” he said.

“After an intensive stakeholder engagement and public awareness campaign from May to November 2024, the PCNGi most important achievement was to convince the private sector to invest critical funds alongside the government’s investments upon stimulation of demand by commercial vehicle operators and private vehicle users alike.”

According to the director, Nigeria’s capacity to convert vehicles from petrol or diesel to bi-fuel systems has increased by 3,000 percent, with the number of conversion centers growing from just seven to over 200 nationwide.

Oluwagbemi announced that the PCNGi team is set to achieve 10,000 vehicle conversions by the end of the first quarter of 2025.

He further disclosed that 405 buses have been deployed as part of agreements with the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) during wage negotiations.

The PCNGi official acknowledged the existing shortage of CNG supply but assured that the newly launched refueling on-lending programme would help address the challenge by providing essential equipment at cost to key conversion centers and refueling partners.

He said by June 2025, the PCNGi team aims to extend CNG coverage from five to 17 states, utilising the ‘Last-Mile Gas Infrastructure Strategy’.

“25 sites are billed to benefit and 15 states are slated for this, already the first site in Kwara State is live and Kogi, Ekiti Rivers and Abuja will soon join them before May 1, 2025, by June 12 we shall have Kaduna, Abia, Enugu joining the fray with Niger, Kano and Benue following shortly thereafter,” Oluwagbemi said.

“To further bolster this base infrastructure, we have cooped our private sector partners to deploy over 150 new refueling locations in the next 18months.

“NNPC have already deployed 12 sites, with 8 to go this quarter, and the approval for additional 100 sought and secured for the next 18-24 months.

“We are aware that as a result of our successful awareness campaign last year and ground breaking initiatives like CIP that pay the private sector to convert vehicles to CNG, there has been a visible gap in CNG availability at the last Mile Gas Infrastructure Scheme, we note the longer queues in some localities but assure this is temporary.”

‘PLANS UNDERWAY TO INTRODUCE NIGERIAN GAS VEHICLE MONITORING SYSTEM’

The PCNGi programme director also announced that plans are in progress to introduce the Nigerian gas vehicle monitoring system (NGVMS), which will ensure that only properly converted vehicles can refuel at gas stations and operate on Nigerian roads.
He assured that the implementation of NGVMS would completely prevent illegal fabrication of CNG cylinders.

“The necessary steps to launch NGMS are ongoing are ongoing, we expect it to be in place by year end,” he added.

CNG Conversion

Automobile CNG

Addressing concerns about institutional capacity and public skepticism over safety, Oluwagbemi said the PCNGi has tackled the issues by collaborating with the federal ministry of petroleum to implement comprehensive monitoring of CNG and all gas-powered vehicles.

He highlighted ongoing collaborations with key agencies such as the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC), the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), and the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC).

Oluwagbemi added that the initiative is set to become active within the next 60 days.

Economy

Tinubu Government Unveils 100 Electric Buses for Civil Servants

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Civil Servants

Tinubu Government Unveils 100 Electric Buses for Civil Servants

The Federal Government has commissioned 100 electric buses under the Renewed Hope Mass Transit Programme to ease transportation challenges for federal civil servants and improve workers’ welfare.
Eereporter.com

The buses were launched on Wednesday at Eagle Square, Abuja, with the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Walson-Jack, describing the initiative as a major milestone in efforts to improve the welfare of civil servants.

The first phase of the programme comprises 37 of the 100 buses approved under the Renewed Hope Mass Transit Programme, as reported by Vanguard.

Walson-Jack described the commissioning as her “parting gift” to federal civil servants, coming less than 24 hours before the end of her tenure as Head of the Civil Service.

“What we have here is 37 buses, being the first instalment of the 100 Electric Buses,” she said.

She said transportation had a significant impact on workers’ finances, safety, punctuality and productivity, adding that affordable and reliable transportation would help reduce the burden on civil servants.

“For many Civil Servants, the daily commute shapes their finances, their safety, their punctuality, and ultimately their productivity,” she said.

FG unveils 100 electric buses for civil servants

According to her, the intervention would enable workers to save money, reduce commuting risks and arrive at work with more energy to deliver quality public service.

“A Special Purpose Vehicle has been established to ensure their proper management, maintenance and long-term sustainability,” she said.

Meanwhile, the Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Senator John Owan Enoh, described the project as more than a transportation intervention, saying it combined workers’ welfare, productivity, industrialisation and technology.

He said each of the 100 electric buses could accommodate up to 200 passengers and travel a minimum of 200 kilometres on a full charge.

Also, Director General of the National Automotive Design and Development Council, Olu Osanipin, in a statement on his X handle, said the “first deployment marks the beginning of a phased rollout, with the full complement of 100 electric buses expected to be deployed by December 2026.”

FG unveils 100 electric buses for civil servants

Civil Servants

Transportation

Enoh commended NADDC and other stakeholders involved in the project, urging local manufacturers to invest in factories, deepen local content and produce globally competitive products.

He said the Federal Government remained committed to ensuring that its economic reforms translated into industries, jobs, infrastructure and improved living standards for Nigerians.
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Crime

Brazil Fines TikTok $30m Over Failure to Implement Child Safety

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TikTok Not A Social Media Platform, Official Reveals

Brazil Fines TikTok $30m Over Failure to Implement Child Safety

Brazil’s data protection agency on Tuesday fined TikTok nearly $30 million for failing to implement child safety measures in what it said was a “powerful signal” to social media companies.
Eereporter.com

Brazil has taken a tough stance on the regulation of social media platforms, cracking down on disinformation and requiring users under 16 years to have their accounts linked to those of their parents.

An enforcement director with the ANPD data protection agency, Fabricio Lopes, told a press conference that TikTok “was not taking the necessary measures to prevent adolescents from accessing the platform and from having the data of these children and adolescents processed.”

This data was “being used to offer advertising to adolescents.”

He said the fine of 153.7m reais ($29.9 million) was a “powerful signal to other platforms regarding how seriously the ANPD takes this work” and that the agency hoped they “get the message.”

TikTok agreed last week to pay $400m to settle a lawsuit with the US Department of Justice over claims that the video-sharing platform collected children’s personal data without parental permission.

– Tougher enforcement –
This month, the ANPD also ordered popular streaming platform Discord to suspend livestreams and video calls after a teenage girl was allegedly encouraged to take her own life during a broadcast.

The agency told AFP that an appeal filed by Discord on Monday against the suspension is under review.

ANPD director Lorena Coutinho said the agency had, last week, initiated proceedings to verify the compliance of 22 social media networks and platforms with a law passed this year to protect children and teens online.

In addition to the fine, the ANPD ordered TikTok parent company ByteDance to delete data collected in violation of regulations.

Coutinho said TikTok had committed to suspend all adverts for users who are not logged in.

TikTok has committed to “implementing a compliance plan to improve the protection of children and adolescents,” the ANPD said.

Brazil Fines TikTok

Brazil Fines TikTok

The platform will be required to automatically apply stricter privacy settings to accounts belonging to children under the age of 16, strengthen parental supervision systems, and implement stricter content filters.

TikTok did not immediately respond to requests for comment from AFP.

In 2024, the platform X was blocked for 40 days in Brazil, until the social media network owned by the world’s richest person, Elon Musk, complied with the Supreme Court’s orders to remove accounts spreading disinformation.
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Economy

Umahi Leads the Way as Tinubu Orders Immediate Action on Benin-Agbor-Asaba Road Intervention

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Umahi

Umahi Leads the Way as Tinubu Orders Immediate Action on Benin-Agbor-Asaba Road Intervention

The Minister of Works, Senator Engr. David Umahi, CON, has moved swiftly to address the worsening condition of the Ifaki-Kabba-Ado Ekiti road in Ekiti and Kogi States, and Benin-Agbor-Asaba Roads following President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s directive for urgent intervention to ease the hardship being faced by motorists and commuters.
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Umahi, who expressed deep concern over the deplorable condition of the road and the suffering of road users who have spent hours and, in some cases, days on the route, said the Federal Government was determined to take immediate corrective measures while working towards permanent solutions.

“President Tinubu, GCFR, has directed the Federal Ministry of Works to urgently intervene and ensure that necessary corrective actions are taken to restore movement on the affected roads as quickly as possible.” Said Umahi

The Minister, in response to the directive, has already set machinery in motion for immediate action.

As part of the intervention, Umahi directed the Minister of State for Works to lead a team of ministry officials to the Ifaki-Kabba-Ado Ekiti axis to assess the situation and commence urgent remedial works.

The assignment is already on as of 10 a.m. on Tuesday, August 25, 2026, with officials of the Ministry on the ground to begin the intervention.

While the intervention team moved into Ekiti and Kogi States, Umahi himself headed to Benin, Edo State, alongside members of the National Assembly Works Committees, to initiate a similar coordinated intervention on the Benin-Agbor-Asaba road.

The Benin meeting is expected to bring together key stakeholders, including representatives of the Edo and Delta State Governments and the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), with the aim of finding immediate solutions to the challenges confronting motorists on the strategic corridor.

Umahi also took responsibility for the unfortunate situation on the affected roads and apologised to commuters who have been stranded or delayed for several hours and days.

Umahi

Benin-Agbor-Asaba

He assured road users that the Federal Government’s response would go beyond temporary relief, with immediate measures being pursued alongside permanent solutions to restore the affected roads and improve their long-term reliability.

Francis Nwaze
Senior Special Assistant to the Honourable Minister of Works (Media)
August 25, 2026
Eereporter.com

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