News Roundup: Nigeria’s economy grew at 3.40% in 2021, 2 million Nigerians still living with HIV/Aids – USAID

Buhari asks the National Assembly to remove N888bn projects inserted in the 2022 Budget.
President Muhammadu Buhari has asked the National Assembly to remove N887.99 billion worth of projects inserted into the 2022 budget. The president, who identified over 130 projects in the budget that should be deleted, also queried the lawmakers for including their own expenditure (of projects worth 16 billion) in the budget of the Executive. According to him, it negates the principles of separation of powers and financial autonomy of the Legislature. Some of the changes, he had noted, are the increase in the federal government’s projected ‘Independent Revenue’ by N400 billion; for which, he said, the justification is yet to be provided. He identified 139 of the 254 projects in the budget totaling N13.24 billion to be deleted.

Nigerian Govt dissuades the use of generic domains for official communication
Isa Pantami, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, stated that government officials must now migrate from using generic domains in their websites and their emails to the “second level under the government top-level domain”. According to him, the use of private emails like, yahoo.com; hotmail.com or gmail.com for official communications by government officials would no longer be tolerated. He said that benefits of the new policy would include the protection of the nation’s cyberspace as well as safeguarding national identity.

Nigeria’s economy grew at 3.40% in 2021, fastest in eight years
Nigeria’s economy grew in 2021 at the fastest annual pace in eight years, relying more on the non-oil sector. The Gross Domestic Product expanded at 3.40 per cent last year, the most since 2014 when it grew at 6.22 per cent, the National Bureau of Statistics said Thursday. The growth beat forecasts by the government. While the Ministry of Finance predicted a 2.5 per cent growth rate for the year, the Central Bank of Nigeria projected 3.1 per cent.

Read also: Nigeria’s shrinking economy records highest ‘growth’ under Buhari

2 million Nigerians still living with HIV/Aids – USAID
According to the United States Agency for International Development, two million people are still living with HIV and AIDS in Nigeria. About 1.8 of the population are on treatment, but the two to three per cent of the population are not on treatment. She added that when HIV started, people could not be saved because of lack of awareness, adding that they are saving lives now that the drugs and services are completely free. In the last 2 years – 2019 to 2022, through the U.S President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), USAID funded Meeting Targets and Maintaining Epidemic Control/Key Population Investment Fund (EpiC/KPIF) which was successfully implemented by FHI 360 Nigeria in Bayelsa and Niger States.

Calvin Klein taps Burna Boy in its Spring 2022 Campaign
Calvin Klein has been known to partner with big talents for their various clothing campaigns, and this time the brand has tapped Grammy winner Damini Ogulu popularly known as Burna Boy, one of Africa’s most notable music artists for its Spring 2022 campaign in order to drive worldwide adoption including the African market. Calvin describes this campaign as a way for real people to come together in authentic acts of togetherness, taking over city streets, front lawns, and open landscapes,” the press release reads. “A campaign that’s all about connection, unified through Calvin Klein styles.”