NSC Partners NiDCOM To Strengthen Diaspora Engagements

NSC partners NiDCOM to strengthen diaspora engagements. NCS granted over N60 billion customs duty concessions in 2025 to attract diaspora investment as it forges strategic alliance with NIDCOM.

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), has expressed readiness to partner with Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), to deepen diaspora engagements, facilitate humanitarian interventions, and support strategic investments by Nigerians abroad.

This commitment was made during a courtesy visit by Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Chairman/CEO, NiDCOM to the Service Headquarters in Abuja, where both agencies reaffirmed the importance of structured collaboration in advancing national development.

Speaking during the visit, Dabiri-Erewa informed the Comptroller General on the preparations for this year’s Nigeria Diaspora Day, whose focus is on Diaspora Health Impact Initiative 2026 (DHII 2026) scheduled for July 20-23, 2026, across multiple states in Nigeria as part of the National Diaspora Day celebrations on July 25 and 26 in Abuja.

Dabiri-Erewa highlighted challenges faced by diaspora Nigerians who import medical equipment and relief materials for genuine humanitarian purposes in the country.

She called for the establishment of a structured framework to support legitimate diaspora interventions, including waivers for medical and educational equipment.

Under the initiative, seven major diaspora medical associations will be deployed to designated regions across the country to conduct medical outreaches and specialised training.

The associations will cover various spheres of medicine across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones before rounding off in Abuja for National Diaspora Day 2026.

Dabiri-Erewa appealed to the Service for seamless collaboration in participating at the 2026 Diaspora Day, clearing medical equipment and supplies to be brought in for the outreach, while also seeking moral, financial, and institutional support for the event.

She used the opportunity to invite the Comptroller General to participate in the Diaspora Quarterly Lecture Series, which attracts thousands of participants and to be physically present at the Global Diaspora Summit scheduled to hold in Canada on August 12, 2026.

She also proposed joint training initiatives, including sensitisation programs for Customs officers on the diaspora phenomenon and capacity-building support for NiDCOM staff.

In his response, the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi commended NiDCOM for its impactful work over the past six years in projecting a positive image of Nigerians globally and strengthening ties between the diaspora and the Nigerian government.

He explained that while revenue generation remains a core mandate of the Service, the NCS has become increasingly deliberate about trade facilitation to improve turnaround time, reduce the cost of doing business, and ultimately enhance revenue performance.

He said in the last three years, the Service under his command has developed guidelines to create dedicated corridors for perishable and life-saving goods at ports and airports.

“We will be willing to do anything for them that will enhance development back home and our reputation abroad as enablers and NOT Impediments to their progress”, he assured.

He affirmed that similar considerations would apply to genuine humanitarian and medical outreach materials, subject to due process and proper documentation, including Import Duty Exemption Certificates (IDEC) from the Ministry of Finance.

The CG further referenced healthcare sector concessions introduced under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration in 2025 to reduce medical costs, discourage medical tourism, and attract diaspora investment.

He disclosed that in 2025 alone, over ₦60 billion in Customs duty concessions were granted to entities involved in manufacturing or importing healthcare delivery systems.

NiDCOM

“This is an area we would like Nigerians in the diaspora to key into. Government is deliberately giving up revenue to encourage investment in healthcare. We can have discussions with those interested,” he stated.

While cautioning against abuse of humanitarian channels, the CG assured that the Service would continue discussions with NiDCOM to establish clear processes that distinguish genuine interventions from misuse.

He welcomed NiDCOM’s proposal for joint training and announced that the Service already operates a help desk, which can also serve as a focal point within the Service to specifically handle diaspora-related matters.

Also in attendance were top senior officers of the Nigeria Customs Service and management team from NiDCOM.

The meeting marks a significant step toward institutionalizing structured engagement between Customs and Nigeria’s diaspora community, reinforcing the Federal Government’s commitment to harnessing diaspora contributions for national growth and development.

E-signed
Abdur-Rahman Balogun (mnipr)
Director, Media, Public Relations and Protocols
NiDCOM, Abuja.

Africa CDC Commended Equatorial Guinea’s Malaria Progress

Africa CDC commended Equatorial Guinea’s malaria progress. “Only nine countries out of 55 in Africa are malaria-free. Equatorial Guinea is on track to become the next,” Africa CDC chief said.

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention has commended Equatorial Guinea’s milestone in malaria control, highlighting broader continental advances in disease surveillance, outbreak response, and local manufacturing of essential health commodities.

Jean Kaseya, director general of Africa CDC, disclosed this during a weekly high-level regional press briefing on Thursday, outlining progress in malaria elimination, emergency preparedness, and institutional reforms across member states.

Mr Kaseya said children under five and pregnant women remained most affected by malaria, which accounted for 95 per cent of global cases and 96 per cent of related deaths recorded worldwide.

He described Equatorial Guinea’s malaria response as a pilot model for elimination that other African countries could replicate, noting that sustained political commitment and targeted interventions were critical to progress.

“Only nine countries out of 55 in Africa are malaria-free. Equatorial Guinea is on track to become the next,” he said, underscoring the country’s steady advances toward elimination status.

He warned that drug and insecticide resistance, alongside climate change, were expanding malaria transmission zones, threatening recent gains and complicating efforts to reduce infections and deaths continent-wide.

The director-general reported that Africa CDC had significantly strengthened outbreak detection and response capacities through expanded surveillance systems, improved coordination mechanisms, and enhanced technical support to member states.

“Public Health Emergency Operations Centres increased from five in 2022 to 32 in 2025, while laboratory networks and pathogen genomic capacity have improved dramatically. As a result, reported outbreaks dropped from 189 in early 2025 to 72 in 2026,” he added.

He attributed the decline to faster detection and coordinated regional responses.

Mr Kaseya said funding utilisation at Africa CDC rose from 34 per cent in 2022 to 95 per cent, while overall funding increased from $52 million to $463 million.

He said human resources were expanded and repurposed rather than reduced, with deliberate attention to gender balance and equitable geographic representation across the institution’s workforce and leadership structures.

Africa CDC

Mr Kaseya said the African Union recently endorsed the Africa Executive Sovereignty agenda, replacing the “new public health order” framework that has guided the continent’s health security reforms.

Mr Kaseya announced plans for an extraordinary summit on local manufacturing in Nairobi in May 2026 and the Conference on Public Health in Africa in Ethiopia in November 2026.

He said Africa CDC also planned to establish an African medical prize, starting in 2027, to recognise outstanding contributions by African scientists advancing medicine and public health innovation.

He highlighted recent outbreak responses, including Uganda’s anthrax outbreak, where Africa CDC supplied 10,000 vaccine doses, and cholera outbreaks in Mozambique, Somalia, and Zambia, worsened by flooding.

Mr Kaseya stressed the importance of Africa producing its own vaccines and diagnostics to reduce reliance on external suppliers and strengthen the continent’s long-term health security.

Equatorial Guinea’s health minister joined the briefing, outlining how the country analysed malaria trends, implemented pilot interventions, and scaled elimination efforts.

CAS Advance Global Defence Diplomacy, Capacity Building During Strategic Visit To CZECH Republic

CAS advance global defence diplomacy, capacity building during strategic visit to CZECH Republic. The Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Sunday Kelvin Aneke, reinforced the Nigerian Air Force’s (NAF) commitment to modernisation, self-reliance and strategic global partnerships during an official visit to the Czech Republic from 23–24 February 2026.

The visit underscored his deliberate drive to leverage international collaboration in strengthening training, sustainment and operational capability development in response to contemporary security realities. It further highlighted the NAF’s growing profile as a forward-looking and professionally adaptive air force focused on long-term institutional capacity.

During engagements with Aero Vodochody Aerospace, the CAS reaffirmed the enduring partnership supporting the overhaul and upgrade of the L-39ZA aircraft, which continues to enhance pilot training and operational proficiency.

Discussions also centred on the NAF’s structured transition to the more advanced L-39 Skyfox platform, ensuring alignment of training systems with modern warfare dynamics while maintaining continuity in pilot development. High-level talks with the Czech Air Force expanded cooperation in training, simulator capacity development and logistics collaboration across rotary- and fixed-wing operations, reflecting a shared commitment to professional excellence and capability enhancement.

Additional engagements with defence industry stakeholders provided valuable insights into advanced simulators, parachute training systems, unmanned aerial technologies and other emerging solutions critical to modern air power.

NAF

Emphasising that contemporary defence partnerships must extend beyond acquisition to knowledge exchange and technology transfer, the CAS reiterated that sustainable modernisation requires innovation and local capacity development.

The visit therefore delivered strategic momentum towards his Command Philosophy of leveraging innovation, emerging technologies and international partnerships to build a resilient, mission-focused and globally engaged Nigerian Air Force.