The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has announced that the Abuja–Kaduna passenger train service is set to resume operations next week.

Mr Callistus Unyimadu, Chief Public Relations Officer, NRC said this in a statement in Lagos, yesterday.

Unyimadu stated that the resumption was as a result of the successful completion of repair and safety checks on the affected section of track at Asham.

“The service was temporarily suspended after the unfortunate incident of August 26.

“ Since then, the corporation has worked tirelessly to ensure both the infrastructure and rolling stock are restored to the highest safety standards in line with global best practices,” he said.

Unyimadu pointed out that as part of their commitment to passenger welfare, the NRC had refunded 512 passengers out of the 583 on board the affected train.

He added that efforts were ongoing to reach and process refunds for the remaining passengers to ensure that no one was left behind.

“The NRC appreciates the patience and understanding of its esteemed passengers and assures the public that their safety, comfort, and satisfaction remain our top priority.

“We also acknowledge the invaluable support of the Federal Ministry of Transportation, security agencies, the media, and all stakeholders during this period of recovery.

“Further details on the official resumption date and schedule will be communicated in the coming days,” he said.

Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) has reaffirmed its commitment to promoting high standards of editorial leadership and protecting press freedom.

This is contained in a statement jointly signed by the President and General Secretary of the Guide, Eze Anaba and Onuohe Ukeh respectively.

The Guild stated this while commemorating the 2025 World News Day, which is annually held on Sept. 28.

The Guild called for a renewed call to uphold fact-based journalism and defend press freedom.

It saluted Nigerian and international journalists who, in spite of daunting challenges, continue to work tirelessly to provide truthful and accurate information to the public.

“As we celebrate World News Day, we note the challenges journalism as a profession faces in Nigeria, most especially the growing attempt to suppress press freedom and freedom of expression.

“We will always stand firm to defend the rights of journalists, promote high ethical standard in our noble profession and resist any move, in whatever means, to harass and intimidate journalists as well as impede journalism.”

The NGE urged journalists to shun fake news, misinformation, disinformation, and propaganda, while upholding the core principles of accuracy, fairness, objectivity, and truth.

It also called on government at all levels to desist from using repressive laws, including the Cybercrime (Prohibition and Prevention, etc.) Act, to harass media professionals.

“We urge the government to always respect the Freedom of Information Act by freely providing journalists any requested information and, therefore, aligning itself with the United Nations Universal Day for Access to Information.

“We urge Nigerians to choose truth, facts, and journalism, bearing in mind that fact-based journalism is the foundation of a healthy democracy.

“Fact-based journalism provides citizens with accurate and reliable information, enabling them to make informed decisions,” it said.

Goge Africa, a pan-African cultural platform, on Saturday called on the Federal Government to give tourism the attention it deserves.

The Co-founder and Managing Director of the platform, Nneka Isaac-Moses, spoke with newsmen on the occasion of World Tourism Day (WTD).

WTD is celebrated annually on Sept. 27, to foster awareness among the international community on the importance of tourism.

It is also celebrated to create awareness of the social, cultural, political, and economic value of tourism.

According to the United Nations, this year’s theme,’Tourism and Sustainable Transformation’, highlights tourism’s transformative potential as an agent of positive change.

Speaking on the growth of tourism in Nigeria, Isaac-Moses said operators in the sector had been left to shoulder the burden without support.

According to her, the private sector players are the life of the party when it concerns tourism in Nigeria.

She also commended them for sustaining the industry.

She decried the lack of government support and collaboration with the private sector in boosting the industry globally.

“For the past 25, 26 years that myself and my husband have dedicated our lives to projecting the best of Nigeria and Africa in terms of culture, tourism, arts and creative economy, we have not got financial support from our governments,” she said.

She emphasised that while countries such as Morocco, Kenya, South Africa, and Uganda pay promoters like Goge Africa to market their destinations, Nigeria had failed to tap into the wealth of experience gained abroad.

She urged governments to attend tourism stakeholders events, including the Akwaaba African Travel Market, that gathered practitioners across Africa so they could gain more insight into the industry.

“What would be the game-changer for me is if the regulators, the government, even if they don’t come in fully at such events, would at least have a listening ear to what the stakeholders are talking about, what our pain points are,” she said.

According to her, though tourism remains one of the largest employers of labour globally, political appointees often lack the knowledge and passion of the sector, weakening efforts to promote destinations.

Dismissing claims that insecurity is the main obstacle to inbound tourism, she insisted that Nigeria is safer than often portrayed.

“Nigeria is not unsafe. Nigeria is very safe.

“The problem is that we have left our own country unpackaged; we don’t do destination promotion,” she said.

Isaac-Moses further urged government agencies, including the National Orientation Agency, to help reposition the image of the country while working with professionals and tour operators to package festivals and attractions into viable tourism products.

She added that with adequate government support, the creative and tourism sectors could generate jobs, boost revenue and reposition Nigeria as a leading destination in Africa.

The Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA) has called for partnerships with American investors to enhance Nigeria’s free trade zones and boost job creation and to expand exports.

Dr Olufemi Ogunyemi, the Managing Director of NEPZA, in a statement, yesterday made the call while delivering a lecture at the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York.

The lecture titled “Free Zones and Industrial Competitiveness: Catalysing Investment Through Regulatory Innovation” was part of a side event themed “Ease of Doing Business in Nigeria: A New Era of Economic Opportunities.”

Ogunyemi said the forum provided a vital space to match policy action with private capital.

“Nigeria’s free zones are designed as practical business enclaves for industrial upgrading and credible, regionally scalable investments.

“We are therefore asking U.S. investors and institutions to undertake site visits to Lagos Free Zone, Lekki Free Zone, Abuja Industrial Park Free Zone and other zones to see existing infrastructure and anchor tenants,” he said.

According to him, NEPZA is seeking partnerships for anchor projects that would transform into small and medium enterprises’ factory shells, create jobs and promote local procurement content.

He said opportunities also existed for co-financing shared infrastructure that would enable hundreds of tenant investments and support scaling up of production for exports.

Ogunyemi reaffirmed NEPZA’s readiness to support due diligence, provide regulatory clarity, and facilitate the needed structure for investors willing to move from dialogue to signed commitments.

The NEPZA boss said the authority had applied world-class mechanisms to raise the industrial competitiveness of the free zones through infrastructure development, regulatory predictability, cluster effects and market access.

He said the Federal Government, through NEPZA, would continue to prioritise private capital in building infrastructure in both private and public-private partnership free zones, describing them as principal engines of rapid transformation.

Ogunyemi urged investors to consider the vast size of the Nigerian market as a springboard for regional expansion and international exports.

He also thanked the Presidency for including NEPZA in Nigeria’s UNGA delegation, and the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) for providing a platform to attract U.S. investors into the free zones.

The grand finale of the Nsibidi Institute Festival 2025 was electrified with emotion last night as the lens of Nigerian photography history focused squarely on one of its most revered figures. In a moving ceremony at the prestigious Quintessential Event Centre in Ikoyi, iconic photographer Don Barber was presented with the esteemed Lifetime Achievement Award, cementing his legacy as a national artistic treasure.

The award, presented by the Institute’s Director, Dr. Adaora Nwosu, was not merely for a career spanning decades, but for the indelible mark Barber has left on the very fabric of visual storytelling in Africa. It served as a powerful recognition of his dual role as both a master craftsman and a foundational mentor.

“We are not just honouring a photographer; we are honouring an institution,” Dr. Nwosu declared to a captivated audience of dignitaries, artists, and former protégés. “Don Barber’s camera has chronicled the soul of our nation—from its tumultuous moments to its triumphs. More importantly, his generosity of spirit has trained the eye of a generation. Many of the top photographers working in Nigeria and across the globe today can trace their artistic lineage back to his studio.”

The event, described by attendees as both poignant and celebratory, saw a who’s-who of the African art scene in attendance. A curated slideshow of Barber’s most powerful works—striking black-and-white portraits of cultural icons, vibrant scenes of everyday life, and historic documentary images—was projected, drawing gasps and nostalgic applause.

Upon accepting the award, an visibly moved Don Barber, known for his humility, shifted the praise back to his community. “This camera,” he said, holding up his classic film camera, which he had brought on stage, “is only a tool. The real magic has always been in the people, the stories, and the light of this beautiful country. My greatest pride is not in the pictures I took, but in the brilliant photographers I have had the privilege to teach. They are the future, and they ensure that our stories will continue to be told with truth and beauty.”

The evening culminated in a standing ovation that lasted several minutes, a heartfelt tribute to a man who has, through his lens and his lessons, forever shaped how Nigeria sees itself.

Over the years, Nigeria’s travel industry has experienced spontaneous growth and unity as a result of Partner Plus Connect (PPC), a platform created by Finchglow Travels, saddled with the responsibility of ensuring growth and knowledge among airlines and other traveling agencies.

In order to equip partners and agents with skills, tools, and knowledge that aid their businesses and ensure they grow from agents to distributors, Finchglow Travels hosted an event at the Golden Tulip Hotel on Friday, 26th September 2025, in Port Harcourt. The event had partners such as Amadeus, Afrijet, and Lufthansa present, as well as other travel agencies.

Themed “Boosting Travel Demands: Airlines and Consolidator Insights,” the conference provided a platform for stakeholders to share insights, showcase innovations, and explore strategies for sustaining growth in Nigeria’s travel industry.

Finchglow Travels, founded in 2006, is not just a travel agency but also a leading consolidator in Nigeria’s aviation sector. With about 19 years in business, it has grown into a trusted provider of travel management services, including flight bookings, visa support, and logistics for both corporate and individual clients. The company has earned multiple awards from global airlines such as British Airways, Air France, KLM, Delta, and Virgin Atlantic for excellence in sales and services. Today, Finchglow Travels continues to strengthen the travel industry through innovation, consolidation, and strategic partnerships.

The event comprised an interactive and engaging panel session, which provided answers on ways travel demands can receive boosts. The panel featured three of Finchglow’s senior staff.

Mr. Abiola Bakare, Sales Manager Finchglow Travels, described the current state of travel demand as an interesting one. He cited statistics from a major newspaper in 2023, showing an increase in passenger numbers from 15.6 million in 2023 to 15.8 million in 2024, leaving a difference of 400,000 passengers who travel out of Nigeria yearly. He projected that travel demand would likely return to pre-COVID levels by the end of the year.

He highlighted positive factors driving travel demand, one of which is pleasure. In today’s world, people now mix business with leisure. Other drivers include technological advancement, which has made flight booking seamless, domestic and regional tourism, which is being embraced as a cost-saving measure, and sustainability and eco-tourism.

On the negative side, he mentioned economic realities, pointing out that people tend to be limited financially. He also highlighted visa restrictions, the harsh realities of life abroad, which force some people to return home, and the shift from Africa to Asia, where people are granted access to quality education and residency. High ticket costs, both domestic and international, also limit demand, as tickets are usually priced in dollars.

Mr. Abiola also mentioned that global security issues such as wars or instability often limit travel demand.

“Finchglow Travels is not about selling tickets. It is about providing a holistic travel service from end to end,” he said.

“One should be able to think beyond tickets,” he added.

Ebiere Bekesuo, Head of Operations Finchglow Travels, spoke on the role of travel consolidators in boosting demand and supporting both airlines and agencies. With Finchglow’s 19 years in the industry as one of Nigeria’s leading consolidators, she explained the role using a mental triangle: airlines at the top, travel agencies and clients at the bottom, and consolidators positioned in the middle.

She defined a consolidator as one who buys in bulk from airlines and distributes to retailers, who are the travel agencies. She described these agencies as “Soft Agents or Power Trade Partners.””

Finchglow Travels, she explained, is geared toward being the intermediary between airlines and agencies, gathering volumes from agencies and giving them to airlines by filling up seats through discounted rates. It offers attractive fares for corporates, NGOs, and oil and gas firms.

“Finchglow Travels is not just a travelling agency but a consolidator with a unique service,” she added.

Ekemiebi Ololo, Branch Manager Port Harcourt, described Finchglow as “the agent’s agent” because the company both buys and sells in bulk at discounted rates.

She highlighted that one of the ways for agencies to leverage Finchglow is by accessing discounted fares. These include humanitarian, student, and corporate fares, all of which are competitive.

She also noted that registration on Finchglow’s website and signing up for the Partners Plus Platform provides additional benefits. This gives access to unique countries, a seamless process via OTA, training opportunities, and a 24/7 customer care line to deliver top-notch service.

Travel agencies, over the years, can also grow their businesses by creating domestic and regional packages.

Mr. Abiola stressed the importance of innovation.

“One should be able to think beyond tickets,” he said.

He encouraged agencies to provide related services beyond ticket sales, learn to create solutions, work with the right partners, diversify into different fare categories, and provide insights to airlines through strategic approaches.

“Finchglow is moving from volume to value — a travel agency that provides end-to-end solutions, not just selling tickets,” he added.

Partnering with major players and leveraging technology, he noted, brings about advanced growth for both airlines and agencies.

Mr. Bankole Bernard, CEO of Finchglow Travels, emphasized why airlines and agencies continue to trust the company.

“There are less than three agencies in this country that operate at the level we do as a consolidator,” he said. “What sets us apart is the structure we’ve built. We hold monthly virtual meetings and quarterly physical meetings nationwide, keeping constant touch with our partners. We have knowledgeable staff who understand the industry inside out, and we make sure our operations are clean — no debit memo issues, no system abuse, and no cutting corners. We work with professionalism.”

He further explained Finchglow’s approach to negotiations.

“Our focus is always on profitability, increasing revenue, and raising the load factor. At the end of the day, the airline’s responsibility is to lift passengers, while the consolidator’s responsibility is to ensure the aircraft is filled. That’s where we come in. We consistently fill the aircraft and maintain strong, professional relationships with airlines. That is why the industry trusts us.”

By Miracle Chidinma Amaechi