@GuardianNigeria Voting is manual. Collation is manual. We already have electronic transmission of results. So how will mandatory transmission ensure transparency?
I took my time yesterday to re-read this article by HC @Abi_Olusanya reflecting on the current Food system structure in Nigeria and how it affects us as players -
I recommend this article for young people in agriculture to read, learn and digest..
Good Morning!
LAGOS WEATHER OUTLOOK:
Thursday, 2nd July, 2026
• Midnight to Sunrise
There are chances of thunderstorms with rain in Ibeju-Lekki, Epe, Eti-Osa, Ikorodu, Kosofe, Ikeja and environs.
• Sunrise to Sunset
Lagos is expected to be under mostly cloudy skies in the morning , while rain showers are expected later in the day in Ikeja, Lagos Island, Mushin, Ikorodu, Ojo, Ajeromi-Ifelodun, Lagos Island and several other places in Lagos.
Advice:
⚠️ There is a high risk of flooding, especially in flood-prone areas. As such, residents are advised to exercise caution around drainage channels and avoid unfamiliar terrain where possible.
SUPA: What Happens When the Government Pays You to Learn a Trade
Nigeria has a problem that does not get discussed enough.
The country has a chronic shortage of certified, qualified artisans. Not because Nigerians are not willing to work with their hands. But because there has never been a structured, funded, nationally organised pathway for someone who wants to become an electrician, a welder, or a plumber to do so with the same seriousness that a university student pursues a degree.
SUPA is the Tinubu administration's answer to that.
WHAT IS IT?
SUPA is a Federal Government initiative run through the Industrial Training Fund designed to train, certify, and license 10 million artisans using a tech-enabled, industry-standard approach. It targets both people already practicing a trade and people starting from zero.
The trades covered include welding and fabrication, plumbing and pipefitting, electrical installation, auto mechanics, carpentry, scaffolding, cybersecurity, fashion design, agriculture, hospitality, catering, and construction.
THE STRUCTURE
SUPA runs in three phases. The Foundation phase is the introductory training. SUPA Phase I covers three soft skills: Artisan Project Management, Artisan Health and Safety, and Artisan Ethics and Patriotism. SUPA Phase II is the technical and entrepreneurial training phase, where participants sit for certification examinations administered by international awarding bodies.
Every participant who completes Phase I automatically transitions to Phase II. No one is left at the soft skills stage and abandoned.
WHAT PARTICIPANTS RECEIVE?
Zero tuition. A ₦35,000 monthly stipend, paid on 90% attendance. Personal Protective Equipment. Essential Training Materials. Access to essential toolkits. And at the end, an internationally recognised certification at no cost to the trainee.
THE CERTIFICATION
This is the part that changes everything.
Top-performing trainees sat for City and Guilds mock examinations across 34 accredited centres and ITF area offices nationwide, covering nine trades including welding, electrical installation, auto mechanics, carpentry, plumbing, scaffolding, and cybersecurity.
City and Guilds of London is not a local qualification. It is one of the most recognised vocational certification bodies in the world. A Nigerian welder who holds a City and Guilds certificate is carrying the same credential as a certified technician in the UK. That certificate does not just improve what you earn in Lagos. It changes where you can work entirely.
In May 2026, 296 artisans were certified in the FCT alone, supervised by Turkish certification firm Alberk QA Technic, covering over 20 vocational and technical skill areas. ITF is in active discussions with additional international certification bodies to expand the options further.
THE NUMBERS
29,000 artisans graduated from the Foundation phase. The website has their testimonials. Real names. Real trades. Real people.
ITF screened participants across all 90 senatorial districts in the country to validate registrations, assessed and enlisted qualified training centres, and monitored training in every centre. Over 800 training centres are currently enlisted, with plans to expand to 1,500.
100,000 artisans are now being onboarded for Phase I, which includes the 29,000 who already graduated from the Foundation phase.
What happens after training
ITF just launched a Business Incubation Programme specifically for SUPA graduates. Beneficiaries receive entrepreneurship training through the internationally recognised Start and Improve Your Business curriculum, plus mentorship, business support services, tools, equipment, and market access.
ITF has also reached an advanced stage in its partnership with the Nigerian Employers Consultative Association to link SUPA graduates directly with industries for employment.
Three exits exist when you complete SUPA. You get a job through the NECA employer pipeline. You start your own business through the incubation programme. Or you take your City and Guilds certificate and go work anywhere in the world that recognises it.
WHY THIS MATTERS
In Germany, a certified electrician earns more than many university graduates. The country's industrial dominance is built on a workforce where tradespeople are treated as professionals, not as people who could not make it into university.
Nigeria has been producing university graduates into a market that cannot absorb them, while simultaneously having a shortage of certified technicians to build, wire, fix, and maintain the infrastructure the country needs.
SUPA is not a welfare programme. It is an industrial strategy. The government is paying people to acquire skills that the Nigerian economy is short of and that the global economy will pay serious money for.
29,000 trained. 100,000 in pipeline. City and Guilds certification active. Business incubation launched. The foundation is there.
A modern gateway that reflects Nigeria's progress is gradually taking shape!
The Murtala Mohammed International Airport is getting a fresh new look under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Before Tinubu became President....
He organized Birthday Colloquiums where he debate critical national issues and he did it for over 14 editions..
I followed many editions..and it moulded my impression of him....
Even before 2015.... I have always wished he leads Nigeria one day....
He is a man on a mission.....
A man who can wake up from sleep and tell you everything structurally wrong with Nigeria and the practical solutions
When he declared for president...I was much interested in getting his manifesto..to get a glimpse of what I should expect from him...
.....Even when the content creator contesting with him claimed he doesn't need manifesto to lead Nigerians...
A politician vying for office without manifesto owe you nothing.... because he promised nothing ....
Since 2023... I have been meticulously ticking Tinubu promises in his manifesto...he has clearly shown he is keeping his promises...
Forget his critics.... they were busy dancing kere renke during the campaigns to know that governance is a serious business
One of such business I have been looking up to was the Reform of NYSC....
For over 50 years...the scheme was merely for national integration.... I don't think it still achieves that aim going by how divided the country is today...
Almost N500 billion was spent on the scheme in 2025.... that can't ..keep being wasted on fruitless integration...
The Tinubu Reform is redirecting the scheme from wasteful integration to national productivity...
Graduates will be assigned to
organizations related to their degree and career interests.
This gives graduates relevant work experience that employers value....and can equally makes them employers of labor...
I have been a strong advocate of these for decades...
The new Reform is subject to national assembly approval enacting the existing act of the scheme...
I hope they give it accelerated hearing...
If Tinubu complete 70% of what am seeing in this manifesto in 8 years..
Nigeria would be a country where even all the modern day winches would renounce evil...
As for the never do well anarchists...
The will continue to wail
Besides, setting up a primary health care center, is not the work of the president, it is the work of the Governor and the local government chairman.
I expect Peter Obi to tell us where he will get the money from.
Lol 😆
As part of our ongoing public sensitization efforts, I will be joining an Instagram Live session tonight at 10:00 p.m. with Daddy Freeze (@daddyfreeze) to discuss environmental issues and flooding, and how they impact Lagos and its residents.
I will also be live on News Central @NewsCentralTV tomorrow, Thursday, 2nd July, at 9:00 a.m., to discuss “Managing Flood and Waste System Challenges in Lagos.”
Please join us for these important conversations.
TW
Call For Expressions of Interest
The Office of the Special Assistant to the President is inviting qualified Nigerian youths with a background in Agricultural Extension to submit their details for consideration.
Eligibility Requirements
Applicants must meet the following criteria:
1. Have a minimum of two (2) years of field experience in the agricultural extension sector, either as: * An Agricultural Extension Agent, or * An Input Dealer working directly with farmers.
2. Possess a valid and functional email address and phone number.
3. Have a functional bank account with a name that exactly matches the name on their National Identification Number (NIN).
4. Be able to read and write.
Qualified candidates who meet the above requirements are encouraged to submit their details as directed in the application process.
We encourage all eligible young professionals to take advantage of this opportunity.
https://t.co/VsWEDonA4T