Category Nigeria News

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed between the tech companies Lakeba Group and Next Digital (Nigeria), AqlanX (UAE), and Agentic Dynamic (Netherlands) to establish a&nbsp, Joint Venture (named&nbsp), AfricAI.

AfricAI, a pioneering initiative to advance Africa’s AI sovereignty and regional digital infrastructure, focuses on deploying, commercializing, and localizing enterprise-grade AI solutions that are specifically tailored for African markets.

AfricAI will immediately concentrate on Nigeria as its main market, leveraging existing national data centers and edge infrastructure to deliver impactful AI applications in the fields of healthcare, digital identity, document automation, public administration, and enterprise services, according to a joint statement.

The joint venture aims to establish Africa as a leading global producer of locally developed, inclusive, and context-aware AI ecosystems built for local needs.

Also read: &nbsp, Passwords Under Threat as Tech Giants Strike for Better Security.

The founding partners stated in the statement that “we are bringing together four complementary pillars: global IP, regional expertise, deployment excellence, and next-gen agentic AI architecture” to create an AI foundation that reflects African realities.

They claimed that AfricAI’s goal was to develop AI within Africa, for Africa, rather than outsourcing it to other countries.

A distributed, interoperable AI network is being developed by AfricAI across Africa. AfricAI uses localized applications in agriculture, urban planning, public services, and education to provide trusted, transparent AI infrastructure for African governments, businesses, and communities, they continued.

The JV intends to expand to Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, and Rwanda by 2026, train more than 100 regional AI professionals, and firmly establish data, deployment, and decision-making on the continent.

The strategic partnership’s goals include creating and deploying sovereign AI applications that are specifically designed for local market requirements in fields like digital identity, document automation, healthcare, education, and enterprise services.

In order to enable adaptable and explainable AI across industries like human resources, CRM, legal, and public policy, the joint venture is also expected to incorporate modular, agent-based AI architecture&nbsp.

To ensure that AI workloads are hosted, processed, and governed locally in accordance with national data residency requirements, it will use existing Nigerian edge and cloud infrastructure.

In addition, it will establish a Centre of Excellence (CoE) in order to foster a regional talent pool in areas of AI development, cybersecurity, model tuning, and ethical deployment, according to the statement.

Scalable AI solutions that address national development objectives and market opportunities will be prioritized by AfricAI. Agentic AI assistants, multilingual health and citizen services, document intelligence and knowledge automation, and sovereign AI for identity and compliance are the first examples of initial deployments.

Prince Malik Ado-Ibrahim, the chairman of Next Digital, stated that the company was developing AI to reflect “who we are as Nigerians and Africans.”

More than just software, AfricaAI is all about. It’s about bringing our intelligence to the world, creating a future for us, and putting Africa on the map. We are prepared, Ado-Ibrahim continued, “and Nigeria will lead that movement.”

Giuseppe Porcelli, the CEO of Lakeba Group, stated that the company has long been at the forefront of global AI innovation.

“AfricAI represents a courageous next step for sovereign AI’s future, not just for Lakeba.” The ideal starting point for the creation of an authentic African AI ecosystem is Nigeria. We are proud to design the AI infrastructure Africa needs and deserves thanks to our flagship DoxAI platform and extensive capabilities in cybersecurity, automation, and orchestration, Porcelli said.

Localization, multilingual compliance, and digital trust are the foundation of our AI philosophy, according to the founder and CEO of AqlanX, Demetrio Russo.

AqlanX’s strategic intention is to influence Africa’s digital sovereignty agenda while fostering secure, AI-first innovation ecosystems built for scale, ethics, and inclusion, Russo said.

The company’s Chairman and CEO, Eren Sivasli, Sivasli, stated that the company was excited about its contribution to the project.

According to the Yobe State Emergency Management Agency, there have been 2 634 state residents and 1 fatality as a result of recent flash floods.

Additionally, it stated that the disaster had already affected 14 communities.

However, the work was still being done, according to the agency’s Executive Secretary, Mohammed Goje, who made the remarks while responding to the state’s Potiskum Local Government Area’s heavy rainfall in collaboration with NEMA.

 , Yobe SEMA Decries Limited Funds For IDPs

Goje explained that SEMA was currently assisting victims of Potiskum’s most recent floods by providing life-saving assistance and early recovery assistance.

The state government’s intervention, in his opinion, had benefited over 600 displaced people who had sought temporary shelter at Sabon Gari Primary School.

In addition to providing for the immediate household’s immediate needs for shelter and hygiene, the intervention includes daily meal assistance, cash assistance, and the distribution of dignity kits.

Mrs. Zubaida Umar, NEMA’s Director General, reported that the organization had activated the Maiduguri operations office, which immediately sent a rescue team to the affected areas.

According to preliminary assessments, 21 communities in five Potiskum wards have been impacted.

The Catholic Immaculate Conception Minor Seminary was abducted by gunmen from the Etsako East Local Government Area of the State on July 10, 2025, according to the Edo State Police Command, making every effort to secure their release.

The police command made this statement as a response to concerns raised after a viral video of the seminarians being filmed and requesting assistance surfaced online.

The Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Moses Joel Yamu, claimed that CP Monday Agbonika, the police commissioner, was directly helming the rescue efforts in a statement released on Sunday.

Also read: Gunmen Kill Security Agent and Abduct Three Seminarians in Edo.

“The Anti-Kidnapping Unit and other tactical teams immediately mobilized to ensure the victims’ safe rescue,” the statement read. A tactical Division has also been established in the Ivieukwa Community to improve security and technical intelligence in the area, “in support of these efforts,” the statement said in part.

The police continued, adding that they were putting together coordinated operations and advanced intelligence with security experts.

Yamu believes that the joint approach emphasizes the urgency of the rescue mission.

The police urged parents, guardians, and the Catholic Diocese of Auchi to remain calm while responding to concerns raised by a viral video of the abducted seminarians, insisting that their safety remained a top priority.

The Catholic Diocese of Auchi, parents, guardians, and the general public know about the recent viral video involving the boys, and we want to let everyone know that the Edo State Police Command is steadfast in its efforts to rescue the seminarians.

In this challenging time, the families have “we deeply sympathize with them” and applaud their patience and cooperation with security agencies, the statement continued.

The Command reiterated its commitment to safeguarding lives and property, and it also made an appeal to the public for assistance and cooperation as operations get more intense.

It stated that updates would be made as the process progressed without compromising the boys’ safety.

During the alleged murder of a member of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC), an official was reported to have been killed at the Catholic minor seminary in Ivianokpodi, Agenebode.

The Catholic Bishop of Auchi Diocese, Gabriel Dunia, pleaded with President Bola Tinubu, Governor of Edo State, Monday Okpebholo, and security forces to urgently rescue the seminarians who were suffering in the wake of the viral video.

Bishop Dunia expressed regret over the 35 days of armed strangers’ association and pleaded with the public to pray for their release in a statement released by the Diocese’s Director of Communications, Rev. Dr. Peter Egielewa on Thursday.

The bishop urged the president, governor, and all other national security forces to “do the needful and assist in rescuing our children from the clutches of the kidnappers.”

General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB), former military president, is being celebrated on his 84th birthday with former president Goodluck Jonathan and other Nigerians.

Jonathan described him as a nationalist and one of Nigeria’s most outstanding leaders in a ceremony ceremony at his Hilltop residence in Minna on Sunday.

“We praise God that this nation has produced many leaders since independence, but General Ibrahim Babangida stands out as one who gave his all as a military head of state.” His residence has become a “Mecca” for Nigerians from all over the nation, which speaks volumes about his personality.

He doesn’t hold any sectarian positions, but he does believe in the unity of Nigeria. He has friends from all over the nation. We’ll keep honoring him and wishing for his long life so that he can continue to lead the younger generation, Jonathan declared.

During the 2019 presidential election, Segun Showunmi, the former president, and former Atiku Abubakar spokesperson, accompanied the former president with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate for Ogun State.

In his remarks, Showunmi referred to Babangida as a leader who had courage and vision and whose experience is still important to the country.

General Babangida is one of the leaders of Nigeria who has the audacity and courage to pursue big ideas. His wisdom is always needed at crucial points in our nation’s development, he said, and we thank God that he is still with us.

Operatives of the Akwa Ibom Police Command has smashed a cultist and robbery syndicate, resulting in recovery of several stolen items.

Already, the cultist and robbery suspect, who had been terrorising some residents of Ikot Ekpene Local Government Area, is cooling off his feet in the police cell.

Spokesperson of the Command, Timfon John, disclosed this in a statement on Saturday.

READ ALSO: Police Arrest Officer, Civilians For Extortion And Armed Robbery In Edo

“On Thursday, August 14, 2025, at approximately 7: 00 PM, operatives of the Command successfully arrested a suspected notorious cultist and armed robbery suspect who has been terrorizing residents of the Ikot Ekpene and surrounding areas”, the statement read.

“Acting on credible intelligence, operatives of the Command apprehended the suspect, one Inima Sunday Akpan, a male from Abak Itiat Ikwuk Village in Ini Local Government Area, who had been in hiding in Ibiaku Village near Uyo City Polytechnic. Akpan has an history of involvement in multiple armed robbery cases, including recent incidents in Ikot Otor, Ikot Uboh, and Ikot Osurua, where a lawyer (name withheld) was shot and several others were injured. Other members of his gang have already been apprehended”.

She said a new Daylong motorcycle, one 32-inch Itec television, one LG home theater/sound system, one amplifier and one foam were recovered from the suspect.

Operative operatives have arrested eight suspected kidnappers and recsued a kidnap victim in its war against kidnappings and other violent crimes in the country.

The operation held in Kaduna and Delta State, Force spokesman, Muyiwa Adejobi, said in a statement on Sunday.

He said firearms, ammunition, and fabricated weapons were also recovered during the exercise executed by tactical units in Kaduna and Delta States.

Identiying the kidnap victim as Hussaini Ibrahim from Jagindi Tasha Village, Adejobi said operatives of the Kaduna State Police command launched a coordinated rescue operation which successfully yielded results when the abductors abandoned the victim in a nearby forest.

READ ALSO: Police Arrest Officer, Civilians For Extortion And Armed Robbery In Edo

“In Kaduna State, following the abduction of one Hussaini Ibrahim from Jagindi Tasha Village, Jema’a LGA, operatives of the state Police command launched a coordinated rescue operation which successfully yielded results when the abductors abandoned the victim in a nearby forest,” he stated.

“Follow-up investigations led to the arrest of four suspects directly connected with the abduction, named Umar Yusuf Jabiri of Jagindi Tasha, Buhari Muhammad, a.k.a. “General” of Bayya village, Ahmadu Nasiru of Gidan Waya and Zakari Saleh and the recovery of one AK-47 rifle and two (2) locally fabricated Ak-47 rifles.”

See the full statement below:

INTERNAL SECURITY: POLICE OPERATIVES RESCUE ONE, ARREST EIGHT SUSPECTED KIDNAPPERS, RECOVER CACHE OF ARMS AND AMMUNITION IN DELTA, KADUNA STATES.

In a recent series of coordinated intelligence-led operations, the Nigeria Police Force has again made significant breakthroughs in its ongoing fight against kidnapping and gun running. These operations, executed by tactical units in Kaduna and Delta States, led to the arrest of eight high-profile suspects and the recovery of assorted firearms, ammunition, and fabricated weapons.

In Kaduna State, following the abduction of one Hussaini Ibrahim from Jagindi Tasha Village, Jema’a LGA, operatives of the state Police command launched a coordinated rescue operation which successfully yielded results when the abductors abandoned the victim in a nearby forest. Follow-up investigations led to the arrest of four suspects directly connected with the abduction, named Umar Yusuf Jabiri of Jagindi Tasha, Buhari Muhammad, a.k.a. “General” of Bayya village, Ahmadu Nasiru of Gidan Waya and Zakari Saleh and the recovery of one AK-47 rifle and two (2) locally fabricated Ak-47 rifles.

In a related development, operatives of the Anti-Kidnapping Unit acting on credible intelligence intercepted a suspicious waybill from Jos, Plateau state headed for Gusua, Zamfara state. Detailed search conducted led to the recovery of an Ak-47 rifle hidden inside a sack. Follow-up investigation on the origin of the waybill led to the arrest of two suspects, one Abdulmumin Sani and Naziru Musa who had arrived in Gusau to take delivery of the firearm from Kaduna State.

Meanwhile, in Delta State, operatives of the CP-Special Assignment Team (CP-SAT), supported by the X-Squad and Buffalo Patrol units, raided a kidnapping gang hideout along Ibusa Road. One Chiadiji Collins, a.k.a. “Smooth,” aged 42, a notorious suspected kidnapper linked to multiple abductions in the Ibusa, Ogwashi-Uku, and Asaba axis, was apprehended. A subsequent search of his residence in Ewulu community, Aniocha South LGA, led to the recovery of one AK-47 rifle and forty rounds of 7.62mm live ammunition. Further investigations led to the arrest of a second suspect, Ezechie Andrew, who was found in possession of two pump-action guns and two live cartridges.

All suspects are currently assisting the Police in series of investigations to apprehend other members of their gangs. The suspects will be charged to court upon conclusion of all investigations.

The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olukayode Adeolu Egbetokun Ph.D, NPM commended the tactical precision, professionalism, and bravery of the operatives involved in these successful operations which are reflections of proactive intelligence gathering. He again reaffirmed the commitment of the Force to remain ahead of criminal elements through intelligence-led policing, inter-agency collaboration, and robust community engagement. He further urged citizens to remain vigilant, provide timely information, and support the police in its efforts to combat crimes and maintain law and order.