Author: The North Journals

By Moses Amos Nigerian footballer Tochukwu Nnadi has completed a transfer to French Ligue 1 side Olympique de Marseille from Belgian club Zulte Waregem, the French club confirmed on Tuesday. The move follows an impressive spell in Belgium, where Nnadi’s performances attracted interest from clubs outside the Jupiler Pro League. Marseille, one of France’s most successful and widely supported teams, have now secured the services of the Nigerian as part of efforts to strengthen their squad ahead of the new season. Although details of the transfer were not immediately disclosed, the move marks a significant step in the player’s career,…

By Saheed Babajide Owonikoko and Kelvin Ashindorbe As registered voters hit record highs, turnout collapsed to historic lows, raising fears about the substance and future of Nigeria’s democracy Nigeria’s democracy is facing a quiet but profound crisis: voters are staying away from the polls in unprecedented numbers. Despite a steady rise in the number of registered voters since the country returned to civilian rule in 1999, participation in general elections has fallen sharply, reaching its lowest point in the 2023 polls. Only about 28.6 per cent of eligible voters cast ballots in the last presidential election, the worst turnout recorded…

The United Nations University Institute of Natural Resources in Africa (UNU-INRA) has awarded grants to six young agritech innovators from Ghana, Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire under its Innovate for Clean Agricultural Technologies (INFoCAT) project. The grants were announced on January 27, 2026, during a policy roundtable attended by representatives of government ministries, academia, agriculture, renewable energy firms, development partners and the media. The INFoCAT project focuses on promoting clean energy-powered agricultural technologies while advancing youth and gender inclusion in the agricultural sector. The initiative targets smallholder farming communities in West Africa, where limited access to affordable and reliable clean energy…

The Centre for Peace and Security Studies (CPSS) at Modibbo Adama University (MAU), Yola, has hosted a public lecture that challenged long-held assumptions about peacebuilding in Nigeria and other conflict-affected regions. The lecture, titled “Transitioning from Gown to Town: A Practitioner’s Perspective on Building Peace in Non-Permissive Contexts,” was delivered by Paul Nyulaku, a peacebuilding and disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR) practitioner and Founder of Triple Peace Africa . Mr Nyulaku argued that contemporary conflicts no longer follow the linear, post-war trajectory assumed by conventional peace theories. Instead, he said violence in many parts of Africa — particularly Nigeria —…

Based on an investigative research project by Aminu Adamu When crimes are committed in Nigeria, justice often begins and ends not in laboratories but in interrogation rooms. It is here that confessions substitute for evidence, suspects become culprits before trial, and the science meant to anchor justice remains largely absent. As violent crime spreads across the country, Nigeria’s policing system continues to operate within a forensic vacuum, one that has far-reaching consequences for human rights, accountability and public trust. This investigation, drawn from an in-depth research project by Aminu Adamu, interrogates why forensic science remains marginal within Nigeria’s criminal justice…

By Aminu Adamu On her first day in a British operating theatre, Nurse MJ did not expect the mop. She had trained as a Registered Nurse in Nigeria, worked in high-pressure surgical environments, mastered clinical judgment, patient safety protocols, and the unspoken choreography of theatre teamwork. She had assisted surgeons, coordinated with anaesthetic technicians, and trusted that when an operation ended, other professionals, cleaners, porters, technicians, would step in, each performing a clearly defined role. Then, in 2019, in a UK hospital she had long imagined as the gold standard of healthcare systems, the list finished its first case. As…

By Sani Saidu Muhammad Africa, particularly the Sahel region, is confronting a new wave of extraction driven not by armies or chartered companies but by algorithms, biometric systems, and artificial intelligence platforms controlled largely from the Global North, a new report has warned . The report, The Silicon Scramble for Africa, argues that Western-led “inclusive AI” and digital identity programmes are reproducing colonial patterns of resource extraction, this time centred on data, minerals, and invisible digital labour while offering limited benefits to African communities. It describes the continent as an emerging testing ground for algorithmic systems marketed as tools for…

In Kumasi, Ghana’s second-largest city, the traffic rarely sleeps. From early morning until dusk, engines idle, horns blare and exhaust fumes hang in the air, a familiar haze in a city expanding faster than its roads can cope with. Congestion here is not just an inconvenience; it is a steady contributor to air pollution, rising transport costs and carbon emissions – a reality shared by many growing cities across the Global South. Threading his way through this daily gridlock on an electric bicycle is Engr. Mahmud Mohammed-Nurudeen, a science and climate journalist who has decided that the climate crisis he…

Hon. Tijjani Muhammad Amana, a former chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has congratulated Governor Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau State on his defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC). In a media chat in Abuja, Hon. Tijjani Mohammed described the Governor’s decision as being in the best interest of the Plateau people. Hon. Tijjani Mohammed had planned to attend the Governor’s reception in Jos but couldn’t make it due to unavoidable reasons, though he’s well represented at the reception. He expressed his support for the Governor’s decision, stating it was a move that would benefit the people of Plateau…

My article on the above topic, published today, Monday, 26 January 2026, on News Chronicles, is already generating a volume of reactions that should neither be ignored nor overlooked. These responses are valuable in our collective pursuit of validation, progress, and informed judgment drawn from diverse opinions, lived experiences, and careful observation, the elements that help shape outcomes of merit, public expectations and benefits From the samples of opinions compiled below, with more still coming in, it becomes increasingly difficult to agree with the position of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN). When alcohol…