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Tony Elumelu to Deliver Keynote Address at TICAD Africa Development Conference in Japan
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Tony O. Elumelu, Founder of the Tony Elumelu Foundation and the Chairman of the United Bank for Africa (UBA), will speak at the Seventh Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), taking place in Yokohama, Japan from August 28 – 30, 2019. As the leading champion of entrepreneurship in Africa, Mr. Elumelu will ensure that the voice of a new generation of African entrepreneurs, capable of transforming the continent, is heard at the highest level.
Elumelu will speak alongside global and African political and business leaders, including Prime Minister Shinzō Abe of Japan; H.E. Mr. Muhammadu Buhari, President of Nigeria; H.E. Mr. Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, President of Egypt and Chair of the African Union (AU); H.E. Mr. Cyril Ramaphosa, President of South Africa; and H.E. Mr. Paul Kigame, President of Rwanda.
Mr Elumelu will deliver a keynote speech at the Plenary Public-Private Business Dialogue, the core session, that brings together Japanese and African public and private sector leaders at TICAD. At this event, Elumelu will promote his philosophy, Africapitalism, which posits entrepreneurship being the key to unlocking economic transformation in Africa as he highlights the urgent need to empower young entrepreneurs and how critical it is for governments and other policy makers to create the enabling environment that ensures entrepreneurial led growth.
Following a welcome address by the Japanese Prime Minister, Mr Shinzo Abe, Mr. Elumelu will deliver the keynote address at the official Business Forum, hosted by the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO). The Conference provides a unique platform for key decision makers from Japan and Africa, both in business and politics, to identify opportunities for investment and knowledge exchange.
At a time when international governments and agencies are increasingly recognising that the route to Africa’s transformation is through African-led solutions and private sector growth, Mr. Elumelu’s track record of success, founding UBA, now one of Africa’s leading financial services groups, with presence in twenty African countries, New York, Paris and London as well as his multi-sector proprietary investment holding company, Heirs Holdings, employing over 30,000 Africans, typifies a new generation of African business dynamism.
Mr. Elumelu during his visit to Japan, will join H.E. Paul Kagame, President of Rwanda and Co-Chair of the Leaders’ Group of Generation Unlimited (Gen-U), and UNICEF Executive Director, Henrietta Fore, to co-chair a UNICEF [and Africa Union] breakfast meeting focused on catalysing investment in African youths and developing a specific vision for job creation in Africa. The event will seek specific commitments from African leaders for the implementation of a business plan for digital connectivity in Africa such as the Tony Elumelu Foundation’s TEF Connect, the largest digital network for African entrepreneurs.
Through the Tony Elumelu Foundation, Mr. Elumelu is forging the new narrative for Africa. In the first five years of the Foundation’s flagship Entrepreneurship Programme, 7,521 African entrepreneurs from all 54 African countries have benefitted from Elumelu’s personal commitment of $100m seed capital funding, mentorship, and training. Six of the beneficiaries of the Programme have been sponsored to attend TICAD conference, sponsored by the UNDP.
Mr. Elumelu will be accompanied by a delegation from the United Bank for Africa and the Tony Elumelu Foundation, including Ifeyinwa Ugochukwu, CEO, Tony Elumelu Foundation; Dupe Olusola, Group Head, Marketing, UBA, and Muyiwa Akinyemi, Group Head Corporate Banking, UBA.
Organised by the Japanese Government, TICAD is a three yearly forum for advancing Africa’s development through people, technology and innovation, bringing together government, business leaders, companies and other stakeholders.
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Update : Road Crash: Anthony Joshua Hospitalised, Two Confirmed Dead — Ogun Police Spokesperson
Former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has been hospitalised after a road accident in the Makun area of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Ogun State.
Ogun State Police Public Relations Officer, Babaseyi Oluseyi, confirmed this in a statement.
The incident occurred shortly after 11 am on Monday.
Our reporter, who was at the scene, said the crash happened just before the Danco Filling Station in Makun, ahead of the Sagamu Interchange on the Ibadan-bound axis.
Adeniyi Orojo stated that the Lexus Jeep carrying Joshua, with number plate KRD 850 HN, collided with a stationary truck.
The eyewitness revealed that Joshua sustained minor injuries, while two others died at the scene.
“It was a two-vehicle convoy: a Lexus SUV and a Pajero SUV. Joshua was seated behind the driver, with another person beside him. A passenger sat beside the driver, making four occupants in the Lexus that crashed.
His security detail followed in the vehicle behind.
“Other eyewitnesses and I began the rescue and flagged down oncoming vehicles for help. Minutes after the crash, Federal Road Safety Corps officials arrived. The passenger beside the driver and the person beside Joshua died on the spot,” he said.
In a statement sent to Newsthumb on Monday, Oluseyi confirmed that Joshua and other injured persons were involved in a car accident and rushed to an undisclosed hospital.
He said, “The Ogun State Police Command confirms a road accident today in front of Sinoma, before Danco, along the Lagos–Ibadan Expressway. Anthony Joshua and other injured persons have been rushed to the hospital.
“Further updates will be communicated.”
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Tinubu Leaves Nigeria for Europe, UAE to Attend ADSW 2026 Summit, Says Onanuga
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President Bola Ahmed Tinubu departed Lagos on Sunday, December 28, for Europe, continuing his end-of-year break and ahead of his official trip to Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates.
His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed AlNahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates, has invited President Tinubu to participate in the 2026 edition of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW 2026) Summit, which will take place in the emirate early in January.
The weeklong summit is an annual event that mobilises leaders from government, business, and society to chart the next era of sustainable development.
With the theme “The Nexus of Next: All Systems Go”, ADSW will connect ambition with action across innovation, finance, and people, showcasing how the world can move forward with confidence.’
The President will return to the country after the Summit.
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BREAKING: Fayose Alleges N45.5bn from N50bn Ibadan Explosion Fund Diverted by Makinde for Political Ambitions
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Former Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose, has released what he described as documentary evidence to support his claim that Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, received N50 billion from the Federal Government as a special intervention fund following the January 2024 explosion in Ibadan.
Fayose made the documents public on Sunday in a statement accompanied by a memo from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.
He said the disclosure followed a challenge by Makinde to substantiate his earlier claim that the Oyo State Government received the funds.
“Two days ago, I stated on national television that Oyo State under Governor Seyi Makinde received N50bn from the Federal Government as intervention for the Ibadan explosion. Yesterday, the governor asked me to provide evidence, and here is the evidence he requested,” Fayose said.
The former governor further alleged that only N4.5 billion was disbursed to victims of the explosion, accusing Makinde of diverting the remaining funds for personal political ambitions.
“Only N4.5bn was paid to victims of the Ibadan explosion. The rest, alongside other intervention funds, was diverted to fund his presidential ambition. This, in part, explains the crisis in the PDP and his frequent attacks on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and his administration,” he alleged.
Fayose further said he was compelled to release official documents, despite his reluctance to do so, in the interest of transparency and public accountability.
“Even though it is not in my character to go public with official government documents, I had to do this so Nigerians will know who is saying the truth and who has not been sincere with the people of Oyo State,” he said.
The former governor said that Makinde’s alleged disclosure of detail from private meeting with President Tinubu made fuller public disclosure necessary.
He challenged the governor to take legal action if he believed the allegations were false, insisting that he had sufficient proof to defend his claims.
“I challenge Governor Seyi Makinde to sue me on this. There are also proofs of other intervention funds received from Tinubu’s administration by the Oyo State Government which the governor refused to disclose to the people,” he said.
He further claimed to have documentary evidence of Oyo State’s actual Internally Generated Revenue, contrary to figures publicly stated by Makinde, noting that he would release the details at a later time.
“There are documentary evidences on the actual Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of Oyo State, as against Governor Makinde’s claim, but we will keep our gunpowder dry for now.
“My name is still Ayo Fayose. I don’t say what I can’t prove,” he said.
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