Economy
Mohammed Idris Says “Census No Longer Optional For Nigeria, Data Key To Planning”
Mohammed Idris Says “Census No Longer Optional For Nigeria, Data Key To Planning”
Mohammed Idris says “Census no longer optional for Nigeria, data key to planning”. The federal government says a national population and housing census is not optional for Nigeria, noting that it is critical to effective planning and sustainable development.
Mohammed Idris, minister of information and national orientation, spoke on Tuesday in Abuja during a courtesy visit by Aminu Yusuf, chairman of the National Population Commission (NPC).
The minister said accurate data is critical to effective national planning.
“Data is key to whatever planning you intend to do; if you can’t measure, you can’t plan and if you can’t plan, the results are predictable, therefore, census is not optional for us,” he said.
Idris commended the NPC’s commitment to preparedness and transparency, assuring that President Bola Tinubu will proclaim a new census date at the appropriate time.
“We are waiting for the president’s proclamation, which is the basis for the legal and financial framework of the exercise,” he said.
“The ministry and its agencies stand ready to provide full media and communication support once that announcement is made.”
Yusuf said the visit was aimed at strengthening institutional collaboration and enhancing media partnerships ahead of the forthcoming national census and other activities of the commission.
He thanked the minister for granting audience to the NPC delegation despite his tight schedule, describing the gesture as “a demonstration of his enduring commitment to national development, responsive governance, and public service”.
The NPC chairman commended the federal ministry of information and national orientation and the National Orientation Agency (NOA) for their roles in public enlightenment and mobilisation during preparations for the previously scheduled census.
He also praised government-owned media organisations under the ministry’s supervision for amplifying census messages nationwide.
“This collective effort clearly demonstrated how coordinated government communication can build trust, stimulate participation, and promote national ownership of vital public programmes,” Yusuf said.
He assured the minister that the commission has remained operationally focused and technically prepared despite the postponement of the census.
According to him, the NPC continues to refine its processes to ensure a transparent, efficient, and credible census once a new date is announced by the federal government.
Yusuf said the commission is also strengthening the civil registration and vital statistics system to ensure real-time registration of births and deaths nationwide.

Census No Longer Optional
He said sustained government media support through dedicated airtime and coverage across broadcast and digital platforms is needed to deepen public awareness of the commission’s programmes.
Responding, Idris reaffirmed the ministry’s readiness to support the NPC’s communication and advocacy efforts.
“Our partnership with the National Population Commission is key; we are only performing our duty, we do not even have an option,” the minister said.
“This is the mandate that we have as ministry of information and national orientation, to be in the forefront of advocacy of government policies and programmes.
“The ministry of information and national orientation is ever ready to partner with you to ensure a very credible national census.”
In July 2023, the NPC chairman, after meeting with Tinubu, said the nation’s leader would announce new dates for the census.
In April 2025, Tinubu inaugurated a high-level committee for the exercise.
The last time Nigeria conducted a census was in 2006 under former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
Economy
Tinubu Government Unveils 100 Electric Buses for 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

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.
Eereporter.com
Crime
Brazil Fines TikTok $30m Over Failure to Implement Child Safety
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
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.
Eereporter.com
Economy
Umahi Leads the Way as Tinubu Orders Immediate Action on Benin-Agbor-Asaba Road Intervention
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.
Eereporter.com
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.

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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