Headline

Nigeria’s Population Surge May Fuel Unrest, World Bank Warns

Published

3 weeks ago

October 19, 2025

The World Bank President, Ajay Banga, has warned that without deliberate and coordinated global action, the growing population of young people could become a source of instability rather than a catalyst for progress.

This was as he projected that Nigeria’s population may rise by about 130 million by the year 2050.

Banga disclosed this during the 2025 Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group, where he warned that Africa’s explosive population growth presented both an unprecedented opportunity and a looming risk.

He cautioned that failure to create economic opportunities might turn youthful optimism into frustration, fueling unrest, insecurity, and mass migration with far-reaching consequences for every region and economy.

According to him, with the right investments focused on opportunity rather than need, Africa’s young population could become a powerful engine for sustainable growth and innovation in the decades ahead.

Banga described the coming decades as “one of the great demographic shifts in human history,” noting that by 2050, more than 85 per cent of the world’s population will live in countries currently considered developing.

He warned that over the next 10 to 15 years, approximately 1.2 billion young people will enter the global workforce, competing for only 400 million available jobs, resulting in a gap of 800 million unemployed or underemployed youths worldwide.

A transcript of his speech obtained by our correspondent on Saturday read, “Reconstruction is an essential part of our mandate. A service we stand ready to deliver whenever and wherever it’s needed and to the best of our ability. At the same time, as an institution of development, we are equally committed to conflict prevention.

READ ALSO:

“Alongside rebuilding what has been lost, we must also focus on creating the conditions for opportunity and stability. That is what motivates our actions and decisions today. We are living through one of the great demographic shifts in human history. By 2050, more than 85 per cent of the world’s population will live in countries we call “developing” today.

“In just the next 10 to 15 years, 1.2 billion young people will enter the workforce, vying for roughly 400 million jobs. That leaves a very large gap. Let me express that urgency another way: Four young people will step into the global workforce every second over the next ten years.”

He added that in the time it takes to deliver the remarks, tens of thousands would cross that threshold, full of ambition, impatient for opportunity.

The World Bank boss said the pace of population growth was most staggering in Africa, which will be home to one in four people by 2050.

“Between now and then, estimates suggest that Zambia will add 700,000 people every year. Mozambique’s population will double. While Nigeria will swell by about 130 million, firmly establishing itself as one of the most populous nations in the world.

READ ALSO:

“These young people, with their energy and ideas, will define the next century. With the right investments, focused not on need but on opportunity, we can unlock a powerful engine of global growth.

“Without purposeful effort, their optimism risks turning into despair, fueling instability, unrest, and mass migration, with implications for every region and every economy,” he added.

According to the United Nations Population Fund, Nigeria’s current population stands at about 237.5 million, already making it the most populous nation in Africa and the sixth largest globally.

However, with the projected surge of 130 million new citizens in the next 25 years, Nigeria could climb even higher, outpacing many developed nations in size and youth population.

The World Bank President described Africa as the epicentre of this demographic transformation, where birth rates remain high and economic growth has struggled to keep pace.

READ ALSO:

Banga echoed this concern, warning that failure to harness the demographic dividend could destabilise economies and fuel insecurity.

“Without deliberate action, optimism could give way to despair, driving instability, unrest, and mass migration with consequences for every region and economy,” he noted.

Banga emphasised that job creation must be at the core of all national and international development strategies.

“This is why jobs must be at the centre of development, economic, or national security strategy,” he stated.

READ ALSO:

He disclosed that the World Bank Group has expanded its financial capacity by about $100bn through new instruments and partnerships.

The multilateral development bank co-financing platform, he added, now hosts a pipeline of 175 projects, with 22 already financed, worth about $23bn.

The Bank is also working on an IFC2030 strategy aimed at mobilising more private capital to complement public investment, particularly in developing economies like Nigeria.

Nigeria’s fast-growing population has long been a source of debate among economists and policymakers. While its youthful population, estimated at over 60 per cent under age 25, offers potential for innovation and productivity, the country faces severe infrastructure deficits, high unemployment, and limited social services.

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics shows that youth unemployment stood at over 33 per cent in 2024, while millions remain underemployed or outside the formal labour force.

Headline

Mexican President Pledges Tougher Sexual‑harassment Laws After Being Groped

Published

2 days ago

November 6, 2025

Editor

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Thursday unveiled proposals to boost reporting and prosecution of sexual abuse after she herself was groped in the street in an attack that caused outrage.

Mexico’s first woman president, 63, was assaulted on Tuesday by a drunken man while walking through the streets of the capital.

The assault made global headlines and focused attention on the dangers and harassment suffered by many women in the Latin American country.

Sheinbaum has pressed charges against her attacker for sexual harassment, a charge that in Mexico City covers lewd behaviour and groping.

She has also ordered a review of the widely diverging laws on sexual harassment and abuse across Mexico’s 32 states.

Sexual harassment in public spaces is so prevalent in Mexico that in the last decade, the authorities have created women-only spaces on the metro.

Other cities with similar arrangements include Mumbai and Rio.

“May what happened serve so that women do not feel alone in situations of harassment or abuse… and for this to happen, there must be institutions and a government that supports them,” Sheinbaum told her regular morning press conference.

The UN says around 70 per cent of Mexican girls and women aged 15 and over will experience at least one incident of sexual harassment in their lives.

Sheinbaum said that 45 per cent had experienced sexual “abuse.”

The man who assaulted her put one arm around her shoulder while she was greeting supporters, and with his other hand touched her hip and chest while attempting to kiss her neck.

A member of Sheinbaum’s security detail pulled him away.

Citlalli Hernandez, Secretary for Women, said more than 25,000 complaints of sexual harassment have been filed so far this year.

READ ALSO:

The scale of the problem is believed to be far greater, however, with many women in Mexico, as elsewhere, hesitant to press charges for fear of being victim-shamed or not taken seriously.

Sheinbaum called for an “efficient and quick” reporting system that truly allows justice to be served,” but gave no details of what that might look like.

The attack raised eyebrows over the left-wing president’s insistence on mixing with the public despite Mexican politicians regularly being a target for cartel violence.

The former Mexico City mayor has ruled out increasing her security.

“We need to be close to the people,” she said.

AFP

Headline

US Lawmakers Urge Sanctions On Miyetti Allah, Others Over Alleged Religious Violations

Published

2 days ago

November 6, 2025

Editor

The United States House of Representatives has urged the Departments of State and Treasury to impose targeted sanctions on individuals and organisations, including Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria and Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, over alleged violations of religious freedom in Nigeria.

This was contained in a resolution introduced before the House on Tuesday and cited by The PUNCH from the US Congress website on Wednesday.

Recall that Trump, in a post on Truth over the weekend, declared Nigeria a “Country of Particular Concern” and threatened to take military action if the country did not stem the alleged killings of Christians.

Filed as H. Res. 860 in the 119th Congress, the resolution, submitted by Rep. Christopher Smith with Rep. Paul Huizenga as a co-sponsor, commends President Donald Trump for redesignating Nigeria as a CPC.

The sponsors decried the alleged worsening persecution of Christians and other religious minorities.

They cited a catalogue of findings and reports that informed the measure, including media accounts and NGO data alleging large-scale attacks on civilians, destruction of places of worship, and a pattern of impunity.

The resolution reads in parts, “For over a decade, Islamic terror organisations have carried out mass murder, rape, kidnappings, and other atrocities targeting mostly Nigerian Christians and non-Fulani moderate Muslim populations, resulting in mass displacement and destruction of places of worship

“Prominent Christian and Muslim leaders have been kidnapped or assassinated, including priests, pastors, and imams who advocate for religious tolerance;

“Religious leaders, such as Father Remigius Iyhula and Bishop Wilfred Anagbe, who testified on March 12, 2025, at a hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Committee about the persecution and targeted killings of Christians in the Diocese of Makurdi, have faced intimidation, threats, and harassment from both extremist groups and government authorities.”

Supporters of the measure argued that the CPC redesignation would strengthen diplomatic leverage to press Nigeria for accountability and protection of religious minorities.

“The designation of Nigeria as a CPC will enhance diplomatic efforts to encourage the Nigerian government to take necessary actions to protect religious minorities and uphold fundamental human rights,” they said.

They therefore moved that “President Donald Trump acted appropriately and decisively to redesignate Nigeria as a CPC and hold the Nigerian government accountable for its complicity in religious persecution by radical Islamists, such as Boko Haram and Fulani terrorists.”

They further recommended conditioning US foreign assistance on demonstrable steps by Nigeria to prevent persecution, prosecute alleged perpetrators, and care for displaced populations.

“The State Department should provide immediate humanitarian assistance directly to faith-based groups to support internally displaced people in Nigeria’s middle belt states.

“The United States, through the Department of State and Department of Treasury, should impose targeted sanctions, including visa bans and asset freezes under the Global Magnitsky framework and other restrictive measures, on individuals and entities responsible for severe violations of religious freedom in Nigeria, including sanctions against Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) and Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, and should place Fulani-Ethnic Militias operating in Benue and Plateau States on the Entities of Particular Concern List under the International Religious Freedom Act,” the resolution read.

The resolution also asked the US to justify the purposes and amounts of recent security and development assistance to Nigeria and to tie future support to improved human-rights outcomes.

The resolution was referred to the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Judiciary Committee for further consideration.

If it advances out of committee, the resolution would mark a clear congressional signal backing Trump’s CPC decision and could open the door to further legislative or executive actions.

Meanwhile, the Federal Government had said the United States’ designation of Nigeria as a “country of particular concern” over alleged violations of religious freedom is based on a wrong perception of the country’s security challenges.

The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, stated this on Wednesday in Abuja while addressing journalists.

Idris said the US position stemmed from “misrepresentation and misinformation” about Nigeria’s internal security situation.

According to him, terrorism and violent crimes in Nigeria do not target any particular religious group.

“Nigeria faces long-standing security challenges that have impacted Christians and Muslims alike.

“Any narrative suggesting that the Nigerian state is failing to take action against religious attacks is based on misinformation or faulty data,” Idris said.

Headline

Nancy Pelosi, First Female Speaker Of US House, Announces Retirement

Published

2 days ago

November 6, 2025

Editor

Nancy Pelosi, a towering figure in US politics and the first woman to serve as speaker of the House of Representatives, announced on Thursday that she will step down at the next election.

“I will not be seeking reelection to Congress,” said the 85-year-old Democrat who has been one of President Donald Trump’s fiercest opponents.

In a video targeted at her hometown constituents in San Francisco, Pelosi said that she would serve her final year “with a grateful heart.”

Pelosi — whose term ends in January 2027 — was the first woman to lead a major political party in the US Congress.

Despite entering political office later in life, she quickly rose through the ranks to become a darling of liberal West Coast politics and, eventually, one of the most powerful women in US history.

She is in her 19th term and has represented her San Francisco-area district for 38 years. But her fame centers especially on her renowned skills at the national level, leading her party for two decades.

As House speaker for eight years, she was second in line to the presidency, after the vice president, including during Trump’s chaotic first term.

She was revered for her ability to corral her often fractious caucus through difficult votes, including Barack Obama’s signature Affordable Care Act and Joe Biden’s infrastructure programs.

Republicans painted her as the driving force behind a liberal elite that had turned its back on American values and was undermining the social fabric.

Trump especially made her a target, repeatedly insulting her as “crazy Nancy.” Pelosi never shrank from direct confrontations with the Republican leader, including demonstratively ripping up a copy of his State of the Union speech on live television.

Rumors of her departure had been swirling for weeks on Capitol Hill, but she deflected questions over her political future, insisting that she was focused on a redistricting reform initiative in California that passed on Tuesday.

“I say to my colleagues in the House all the time, no matter what title they have bestowed upon me — speaker, leader, whip — there has been no greater honor for me than to stand on the House floor and say, I speak for the people of San Francisco,” Pelosi said.

“I have truly loved serving as your voice,” she said. “As we go forward, my message to the city I love is this: San Francisco, know your power.”