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News_Naija

Shettima, Aig-Imoukhuede Call For Africa, Middle East Capital Market Partnership

The Vice President of Nigeria, Kashim Shettima, has called on African capital markets to embrace digital transformation and deepen regional integration to establish a financial system that is more efficient, accessible and resilient. Shettima made this call on Thursday at the 2025 Conference of the Africa and Middle East Depositories Association, held in Lagos. AMEDA is the umbrella body for the Central Securities Depositories and Clearing Houses collectively referred to as Financial Market Infrastructures operating across Africa and the Middle East. It was established in 2005. Shettima, represented by the Special Adviser to the President on Economic Matters, Tope Fasua, said in a recorded message, “We are witnessing tectonic shifts in how we engage with one another and the wider world. These shifts, driven by innovation, favourable demographics, digital disruption and economic realignments, compel us to rethink the very architecture of our financial ecosystems and economic management models. “At the heart of this transformation lies the indispensable role of financial market infrastructures, depositories, clearing houses, payment systems and digital platforms that sustain trust, enable transparency, and provide the liquidity our markets require. “In His Excellency, President Bola Tinubu, you have not only found an ally in market reform, but also a steward of economic stability. Our administration is committed to strengthening Nigeria’s financial market infrastructures through a deliberate blend of regulation, reform, capital market development strategies, and robust public-private collaboration from broadening participation in our capital markets to increasing access to finance for MSMEs and start-ups, and financing infrastructure through green bonds, social bonds and sukuk. “Our agenda is anchored in inclusive finance principles and designed to deliver tangible public value. We are also harnessing innovation across sectors from fintechs and mobile platforms to payment service providers to make our financial system more efficient, more accessible and more inclusive. But for innovation to be meaningful, it must be responsible, secure and equitable. No citizen must be left behind.” He added that to shape the future of finance, Nigeria must move beyond domestic thinking and embrace a shared regional vision. “This is particularly urgent and promising in Africa and the Middle East, where the convergence of demographic strength, digital ambition, and bold policy reform is laying the foundation for transformative growth. The African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement marks a defining moment, with the potential to unite 54 countries into a single market of over 1.4 billion people. “The momentum to harmonise capital markets and expand cross-border investment is gaining traction in Nigeria. We have introduced a regulatory framework for digital assets and enhanced legal instruments to support capital market development. These moves are not isolated. In Nigeria, we’re on an ambitious journey to grow our economy to $1tn within the next decade. Achieving this vision requires not only sound policies but also enduring partnerships and the insights of brilliant minds like yours gathered here today. Let this gathering inspire us to build financial systems that are efficient, inclusive and future-proof,” he asserted. Also speaking at the event, the Chairman of Access Holdings, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, called for collaborative efforts to drive the financial market infrastructures needed in both regions. Aig-Imoukhuede noted that, based on past investment trends, the Middle East has shown a willingness to invest in Africa. He stated, “As AMEDA members, you must pool resources, share best practices, and leverage each member’s unique strengths. I understand the transformative power of your umbrella, and you can drive innovation to transform Africa not just for Africans but also for members of the region. This collaborative approach will not only empower individual member states but also create a new world where the Middle East and Africa represent a strong bloc for economic development.” In his welcome address, the Chairman of AMEDA, Abdulla Abdin, said the theme of the conference: Shaping the Future: Financial Markets Infrastructures as Catalysts for Transforming Economies “reflects our deepest awareness of the rapid transformation taking place in the global economy and the role played by the financial market infrastructures in enabling economies to adopt innovation and achieve inclusive growth. “AMEDA holds the view that financial infrastructure is not solely a technical tool; it constitutes an essential mechanism for development and a sound basis for incentivising investment, improving transparency, optimising market efficiency, and realising economic integration within the region.” The Vice Chairman of AMEDA, Haruna Jalo-Waziri, who is also the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Central Securities Clearing Systems, highlighted some key issues for participants to reflect upon during the conference. “As we embark on this two-day journey of dialogue and discovery, allow me to highlight a few key issues that I believe merit our collective reflection: How do we expand access to financial markets sustainably and inclusively, particularly for the unserved and underserved? “How can we effectively position our Market Infrastructures to serve their real purpose and catalyse rapid growth and development of our economies, sustainably? How can we build interoperable and integrated capital markets across our regions to facilitate efficient capital flows and attract global investment?” Jalo-Waziri stated. He maintained that the answers are important for Nigeria, saying, “Our country is on a bold journey to grow its economy to a $1tn economy. This ambition is underpinned by a capital market that must evolve in scale, sophistication and inclusiveness. At CSCS, we are proud to support this journey by investing in future-ready infrastructure, enabling investor confidence, building systemic resilience, and partnering with innovators across the financial services value chain.” At the conference jointly organised by AMEDA and CSCS, the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, was represented by the Commissioner for Economic Planning, Opeyemi George. The Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Dr Emomotimi Agama, was represented by the Executive Commissioner, Operations, SEC, Bola Ajomale.

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News_Naija

Americans Lost $6bn To Crypto Scams In 2024 FBI

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has revealed that investment scams involving cryptocurrency led to a huge loss of $5.8 billion in 2024. According to a report by the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), total losses from internet crimes in 2024 reached $16.6 billion. This shows a sharp rise of 33% from the previous year. Out of this amount, crypto-related scams alone caused $9.3 billion in losses — a shocking 66% increase from 2023. Click here for more

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Worldnews

Reparations For Empire: What The New Pope Owes To Africa

Pope Francis offered respect. His successor must offer justice for slavery, colonisation, and enduring white supremacy. Late Pope Francis, who came to be known as a strong voice for the poor, oppressed and the marginalised during his tenure as the leader of the Roman Catholic Church, had a keen interest in Africa. Throughout his papacy, he demonstrated a deep commitment to the continent, talking about its problems and strengths often. He consistently denounced the exploitation of African resources and people in speeches and statements, called for peace and reconciliation between African nations, and highlighted the importance of respecting and preserving the continent’s rich cultural diversity and local traditions. He visited 10 African countries during his 12 year tenure, and treated each one of these widely publicised and celebrated visits as an opportunity to highlight Africa’s significance to his Church and the world. Francis had ample reason to keep his attention firmly on Africa; it is, after all, the region where the Catholic population is growing the fastest. In 1900, there were just 9.6 million or so Christians across the continent. As of 2025, Africa is home to approximately 750 million Christians. Of this total, some 281 million are Catholics, accounting for 20 percent of the global Catholic population. As such, the successor of Francis, who will be elected in a conclave that will begin on May 7, must continue to maintain a firm focus on Africa. But as Africa fast becomes a main population centre for the Church, African Catholics will be expecting more than frequent visits and complementary speeches from their new leader. Despite its growing popularity on the continent, the relationship between the Catholic Church and Africa has not always been straight forward. For many  years, the Church inflicted unimaginable horrors on Africans, and benefited handsomely from their suffering, with consequences that stretch well into the present. If he is to continue building on Pope Francis’ legacy, and demonstrate his commitment to Africa and Africans, the new Pope must address the role the Catholic Church played in the transatlantic slave trade and the colonisation of the continent. Three years ago, in July 2022, the Global Circle for Reparations and Healing (GCRH), a coalition of reparations advocates, scholars, artists, and activists from around the world, met with Bishop Paul Tighe, secretary of the Pontifical Council of Culture, to make this very point. With this meeting in Vatican City, the coalition aimed to spark a discussion with the Church about the significant, long-lasting damage its extensive involvement in the transatlantic slave trade inflicted on Africa and its global diaspora. To facilitate a collaborative process for healing, GCRH representatives shared with the Church a comprehensive 15-page presentment that chronicles its historical abuses in Africa. It is no longer possible to brush the sins of the Catholic Church on the continent under the carpet. Beginning in the 15th century, Portuguese monarchs sought the approval and assistance of the Popes of the Roman Catholic Church to advance their territorial ambitions in Africa. In response to these royal requests, several pontiffs – who claimed to be the earthly representatives of Jesus Christ – issued papal bulls, or official public decrees, that sanctioned military actions in Africa and supported the transatlantic slave trade, as well as the ongoing enslavement of Africans. These bulls provided the moral and legal justification for the trafficking and enslavement of Africans, as well as for European imperialism and colonisation in Africa, all purportedly in the name of Jesus Christ.​ After the slave trade ended, the Church shifted its focus on supporting the colonisation of the continent. It was, for example, critical to the colonisation of my country – Zimbabwe – functioning both as a catalyst and a beneficiary of its blood-soaked benefits. Missionary initiatives, frequently linked with the expansion of colonial territories, sought to convert “primitive” indigenous populations and validate European dominance. In 1890, two chaplains – one affiliated with the Roman Catholic Church and the other with the Anglican Church – became part of a “Pioneer Column force” that engaged in military conflict against African communities, leading to the colonisation of Mashonaland in present-day Zimbabwe. After the conquest of Mashonaland, the Catholic Church promptly created mission stations on land stolen from local communities. With time, Catholic missionaries played a dual and often conflicting role. They provided moral and cultural justification for violent European expansion but also founded mission hospitals and schools in areas devoid of such services, including the renowned St. Francis Xavier’s Kutama College and Gokomere High School. Nevertheless, their positive contributions in areas of healthcare and education failed to erase the damage they inflicted on the land and its people by backing and participating in their colonial takeover. The enthusiastic support the Church provided to western imperialists not only proved instrumental in the colonisation of the continent, but also served to establish a racial hierarchy that deemed Africans inferior and legitimised white supremacy. Even centuries after the abolition of slavery, the impact of this once Church-approved racial hierarchy continues to shape social systems, governance, law enforcement and economic opportunities for Africans in the diaspora—from South America to Europe and North America. The police murder of George Floyd in May 2020 in the US, which gave way to the emergence of the global Black Lives Matter movement, was just one example of the enduring consequences of these racial hierarchies the Church actively helped built. The situation is not much better outside the US. In August 2024, Ashwini KP, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, said people of African descent in Brazil also “continue to endure multifaceted, deeply interconnected, and pervasive forms of systemic racism, as a result of colonialism and enslavement legacies.” The Church must urgently take meaningful action to make up for its historic sins, and help Africans enduring their deadly consequences on the continent and in the diaspora. In March 2021, The Jesuits, a major Catholic order, made a groundbreaking commitment to raise $100 million for the descendants of 272 enslaved people they once owned and to foster racial reconciliation projects. Although this amount is much less than the $1 billion initially requested by the descendants, the pledge is a step in the right direction, as it signifies the most significant effort by the Roman Catholic Church to confront its historical role in the enslavement of Africans. The Vatican, while not outright speaking against reparations for historical wrongs, has always contended that any such actions should be managed in a decentralised manner. The little progress made on this front in many years, however, suggests a new approach is desperately needed. The National African American Reparations Commission (NAARC) and GCRH are calling for a programme endorsed by the Vatican that comprises acceptance of total accountability, a full formal apology, formal reparations, and bona fide healing processes. This echoes the yearly demands for reparations made by the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the African Union. The new Pope will have a unique opportunity to improve on the close rapport Pope Francis had developed with Africans. He can go down in history as the Pope who finally made the Church a true friend of Africa and helped it make up for its worst mistakes by establishing a comprehensive global reparations initiative. African Catholics have become an important source of the Church’s power and influence in the 21st century. They would expect nothing less from their incoming leader. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance. Follow Al Jazeera English:...

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Worldnews

From Gaza To Vietnam, What Is The Value Of A Photo?

Two maimed children, two iconic images – and no end to barbarity in sight. This month, Palestinian photographer Samar Abu Elouf won the 2025 World Press Photo of the Year award for her image titled Mahmoud Ajjour, Aged Nine, taken last year for The New York Times. Ajjour had both of his arms blown off by an Israeli strike on the Gaza Strip, where Israel’s ongoing genocide has now killed at least 52,365 Palestinians since October 2023. In the award-winning photograph, the boy’s head and armless torso are cast in partial shadow, his gaze nevertheless intense in its emptiness. Speaking recently to Al Jazeera, Ajjour recalled his reaction when his mother informed him that he had lost his arms: “I started crying. I was very sad, and my mental state was very bad.” He was then forced to undergo surgery with no anaesthetic, an arrangement that has been par for the course in Gaza on account of Israel’s criminal blockade of medical supplies and all other materials necessary for human survival. “I couldn’t bear the pain, I was screaming very loud. My voice filled the hallways.” According to Abu Elouf, the first tortured question the child posed to his mother was: “How will I be able to hug you?” To be sure, Abu Elouf’s portrait of Ajjour encapsulates the cataclysmic suffering Israel has inflicted – with the full backing of the United States – upon the children of the Gaza Strip. In mid-December 2023, just two months after the launch of the genocidal assault, the United Nations Children’s Fund reported that some 1,000 children in Gaza had already lost one or both legs. Fast forward to the present moment and the UN’s warning, in early April, that at least 100 children were being killed or injured on a daily basis in the besieged territory. They say a picture is worth a thousand words – but how many pictures are needed to depict genocide? Meanwhile, as the slaughter proceeds unabated in Gaza, today – April 30 – marks the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War, another bloody historical episode in which the United States played an outsized role in mass killing. As it so happens, a nine-year-old child also became the face – and body – of that war: Kim Phuc, the victim of a US-supplied napalm attack outside the South Vietnamese village of Trang Bang in June 1972. Nick Ut, a Vietnamese photographer for The Associated Press, snapped the now-iconic image of Phuc as she ran naked down the road, her skin scorched and her face the picture of apocalyptic agony. The photo, which is officially titled The Terror of War but is often known instead as Napalm Girl, won the World Press Photo of the Year award in 1973. In an interview with CNN on the photograph’s own 50th anniversary in 2022, Phuc reflected on the moment of the attack: “[S]uddenly, there was the fire everywhere, and my clothes were burned up by the fire … I still remember what I thought. I thought: ‘Oh my goodness, I got burned, I will be ugly, and people will see me [in a] different way.’” This, obviously, is nothing any child or adult should have to endure – physically or psychologically – in any remotely civilised world. After spending 14 months in hospital, Phuc continued to suffer from extreme pain, suicidal thoughts and shame over having the photo of her naked and mutilated body exposed for all to see. And yet napalm was but one of many weapons in a US-backed toolkit designed to make the planet safe for capitalism by incinerating and otherwise disfiguring human bodies. To this day, Vietnamese are maimed and killed by the unexploded leftovers of millions of tonnes of ordnance the US dropped on the country during the war. The lethal defoliant Agent Orange, which the US used to saturate swaths of Vietnam, also remains responsible for all manner of incapacitating birth defects and death half a century after the war’s end. In her 1977 book On Photography, the late American writer Susan Sontag considered the function of images like Ut’s: “Photographs like the one that made the front page of most newspapers in the world in 1972 – a naked South Vietnamese child just sprayed by American napalm, running down a highway toward the camera, her arms open, screaming with pain – probably did more to increase the public revulsion against the war than a hundred hours of televised barbarities.” Public revulsion aside, of course, US-backed barbarities in Vietnam went on for three more years after Ut published his photo. Now, the fact that pretty much every image out of the Gaza Strip could be labelled The Terror of War simply confirms that barbarity is still a brisk business. And in the current era of social media, in which both still images and videos are reduced to rapid-fire visuals for momentary consumption, the desensitising effect on the public cannot be understated – even when we’re talking about nine-year-old children with both of their arms blown off. In an Instagram post on April 18, Abu Elouf wrote: “I always have, and still do, wish to capture the photo that would stop this war  – that would stop the killing, the death, the starvation.” She went on to plead: “But if our photos can’t stop all this tragedy and horror, then what is the value of a photo? What is the image you’re waiting to see in order to understand what’s happening inside Gaza?” And on that bleak note, I might ask a similar question: What, in the end, is the value of an opinion article? The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance. Follow Al Jazeera English:...