The night the war came to Niamey: how insurgents pierced the heart of Niger’s capital
Niamey, Niger Investigators in Niger have shed new light on a brazen jihadist assault on the country’s main airport last month, revealing how attackers slipped into the capital using a vehicle seized in an earlier raid. The assault on 29 January targeted Air Base 101 and Diori Hamani International Airport in Niamey, a facility that…
Nigeria’s fiscal reality check: when ambitious plans meet empty coffers
In the committee rooms of Nigeria’s National Assembly, a recurring theme has dominated this year’s budget defence sessions. The stark gap between ambitious spending plans and the funds actually made available to government ministries. During presentations for the 2026 fiscal year, several ministers have reported receiving only a fraction of their 2025 capital allocations, forcing…
Protests, reversals, and loopholes: inside Nigeria’s battle over election integrity
In the corridors of power in Abuja, Nigeria’s lawmakers have taken a step that has both reassured and alarmed many in the country. On 10 February, the Senate reversed an earlier decision and approved an amendment to the country’s Electoral Act requiring the electronic transmission of election results from polling units to the Independent National…
Drones, troops, and sanctions: the US-Nigeria alliance shaking the country’s north
Nigeria and the United States (US) recently announced steps to enhance military cooperation in what both countries’ officials described as a major move to combat Jihadist insurgencies in the north of the country, the Lake Chad Basin and the Sahel region. Under the agreement, about 200 US troops will deploy to Nigeria to train local…
Rediscovering Africa’s ancient glassmakers: the Yoruba bead industry of Ile-Ife
In the mystic forests of Ile-Ife, in southwestern Nigeria, the Yoruba people built one of Africa’s most enduring cultural legacies. The ancient city, which was long celebrated for its bronze heads and terracotta figures from the 12th to 15th centuries, appears to have had a long established sophisticated glass bead industry that began in the…
A rare move: Ghana’s president sacks diplomat over election bribery claims
Ghana’s president, John Mahama Ghana’s president, John Dramani Mahama, recently ordered the immediate recall of the country’s high commissioner to Nigeria over allegations of voter inducement in a party primary election. Mohammed Baba Jamal Ahmed, a senior diplomat and former politician, is accused of distributing television sets, motorbikes, and cash to delegates during the National…
Beyond borders: inside the AfDB-ECOWAS pact to redraw economic lines
Senior officials from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the African Development Bank (AfDB) recently concluded high-level consultations in Abuja, aiming to prolong a key strategy for boosting economic ties across West Africa. The three-day meeting, held from 4 to 6 February at the ECOWAS headquarters in the Nigerian capital, focused on…
The Kwara massacre: inside the Jihadists’ brutal assault on Nigeria’s heartland
In the remote villages of Woro and Nuku in Kaiama Local Government Area, Kwara State, north-central Nigeria, a brutal attack on 3 February has left communities devastated and highlighted the creeping southward spread of jihadist violence. Gunmen, identified by authorities as members of the Lakurawa sect, a group linked to Boko Haram and the Islamic…
Niger’s night of fire: inside the audacious assault on Niamey’s airport
Niamey, Niger In the early hours of 29 January, the quiet outskirts of Niger’s capital erupted in gunfire and explosions as armed militants launched a bold raid on Diori Hamani International airport and the adjacent Air Base 101. What unfolded over roughly 30 minutes was not only a fierce firefight but a grim reminder of…
Nigeria and Turkey sign nine agreements to boost trade and security
Nigeria and Turkey have signed nine bilateral agreements aimed at enhancing economic ties and cooperation in defence, education and other sectors, during a state visit by Nigerian president, Bola Tinubu, to Ankara. The deals, inked on 27 January, include pacts on military cooperation, higher education and diaspora policy, as the two countries target an annual…
