According to OPEC's monthly report on crude oil movement, the price of crude oil dropped significantly in the global market in June. In particular, the OPEC Reference Basket fell by 0.8 percent (63 cents) from $75.82 per barrel in May to $75.19 per barrel. Similarly, the monthly averages for ICE Brent and New
York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) Western Texas Intermediate (WTI) dropped from $75.69 per barrel and $71.62 per barrel in May to $74.98 per barrel and 70.27 per barrel, respectively.

The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) reported in its last monthly oil market report that Nigeria produced 1.18 million barrels per day (mbpd) in crude oil for May 2023. This indicates a 185,000bpd increase over the 999,000bpd made in April, based on data from direct communication. Following this improved output, Nigeria has now reclaimed its top spot as Africa's highest crude oil
supplier/producer, toppling Angola by 73,000bpd.

Data released by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on ‘MoData released by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on ‘Money and Credit Statistics’ has shown that credit from banks to the government fell in May 2023. The data shows that on a month-on-month basis, banks’ credit to the government fell by N70 billion (0.22 percent) to N30.69 trillion in May 2023 from N30.76 trillion in April 2023. However, credit to the private sector increased MoM by five percent to N44.2 trillion in May 2023 from N43.6 trillion in April 2023ney and Credit Statistics’ has shown that credit from banks to the government fell in May 2023. The data shows that on a month-on-month basis, banks’ credit to the government fell by N70 billion (0.22 percent) to N30.69 trillion in May 2023 from N30.76 trillion in April 2023. However, credit to the private sector increased MoM by five percent to N44.2 trillion in May 2023 from N43.6 trillion in April 2023

This study unpacks the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on educational inequalities and related education policy measures in Nigeria. Focusing on primary education, the study aimed to: (i) outline the state and dimensions of educational inequalities in Nigeria before the pandemic; (ii) understand the impact of COVID-19 on student learning performance; (iii) evaluate education-related pandemic measures and their impact on educational inequalities; and (iv) provide policy recommendations on how existing policy responses can be improved to reduce educational inequalities.

Using both quantitative and qualitative data, the study shows that educational inequalities increased during the pandemic across vulnerable groups, particularly low-income families, and children in rural areas. The results reveal a distinct pandemic-related learning loss among students. The dip in performance during the pandemic can be attributed to factors such as prolonged school closures, increased student leisure time, compromised nutrition, and lack of guidance from teachers.

Five key recommendations are made to build resilience in the educational sector and restore progress towards achieving SDG 4 (quality education), namely to: (i) upscale the accelerated learning programme; (ii) increase investment in communication and digital infrastructure; (iii) integrate digital learning into teaching; (iv) invest in adult education programmes; and (v) upscale teachers’ skills.

This paper was first published by the Southern Voice. Click here to read more

Tobacco control policy refers to the efforts made to reduce the impact of tobacco use on public health. This can include measures such as increasing taxes on tobacco products, implementing smoke-free laws, running anti-smoking campaigns, and providing support for people who want to quit smoking. In Nigeria, the government played a critical role in the country's tobacco control efforts by ratifying the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), which commits the government to take appropriate measures to reduce tobacco use and its associated health effects.

At the federal level, the government enforced tobacco control policies that apply to the entire country. The policies in this regard include higher taxes on tobacco products, Public smoking bans, regulations on tobacco advertising and sponsorship, and mandatory graphic health warnings on tobacco packages. Furthermore, the government allocated resources to support tobacco control programs and campaigns, monitor the impact of tobacco use and the effectiveness of tobacco control policies.

This brief highlights the importance of state involvement in tobacco control efforts. It seeks to provide evidence-based recommendations through the WHO MPOWER framework on how state governments can effectively implement tobacco control policies and programs that will protect their residents from the harmful effects of tobacco use.

A nation cannot develop in the face of endemic corruption. The fight against corruption cannot be won unless the rationale (how and why) for the act of corruption is understood and intensive strategies to block those channels are implemented. The fight against corruption in Nigeria has always been focused solely towards its cure (aftermath) while ignoring its prevention (the how and why), which has resulted in no discernable success over the years (Onyekwere et al., 2020).

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has made repeated attempts to contain the inflationary spike by gradually raising the monetary policy rate to 18.5 percent. However, the inflation rate is still persistently high in May 2023. According to the report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the inflation rate increased by 0.19 percent on a monthly basis, from 22.22 percent to 22.41 percent in May 2023. 

Following the new government’s plan to unify multiple exchange rates in the foreign exchange (forex) market, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has taken the monetary policy decision of floating the Naira. In its latest press release, the apex bank declared some operational changes in the forex market. This includes the abolishment of segmentation and collapsing of all segments in the market into the Investors & Exporters (I&E) window, thus, granting commercial banks and other authorised dealers the green light to sell forex at free, market-determined rates.

The World Bank's Global Development Prospect report for June 2023 has maintained Nigeria's projected growth rate 2023 at 2.8 percent. According to the report, this growth will primarily be driven by the non-oil sector as the oil sector grapples with structural challenges, resulting in output levels below the assigned quota by OPEC. Foreign exchange shortages, exchange rate volatility, security challenges, rising living costs, and limited fiscal capacity are anticipated to impede growth.