Author: Nigeriabrief

Despite the introduction of policies aimed at encouraging people to have children, China’s population fell for the fourth straight year in 2025 as the birth rate once again fell to record lows.The number of registered births will fall to 7.92 million, or 5.63 per 1,000 people, in 2025, down 17% from 9.54 million in 2024 and the lowest since records began in 1949.According to statistics from China’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the population decreased by 3.39 million to 1.405 billion, a faster decline than in 2024, but the number of deaths increased from 10.93 million in 2024 to 11.31…

January 19, 2026, 5:26 a.m. ETChelsea’s Enzo Fernandes could be available this summer as Real Madrid and PSG monitor his situation, while Crystal Palace face further interest in forward Jean-Philippe Mateta.Check out the latest transfer news and rumors from around the world.Transfer homepage | Men’s winter results | Women’s resultsTransfer to watchtrending rumorsEnzo Fernandes joined Chelsea in February 2023 in a deal worth 120 million euros. Justin Setterfield/Getty Images- Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain have been given a major boost in their bid to sign Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandes, Team Talk reports. Chelsea are willing to let their star midfielder…

What started as a minor bystander irritation snowballed into one of the strangest subplots of the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025 finals, the infamous ‘towel incident’ that infuriated the goalkeeper and the players faced off against the ball boys. From being snatched by towels, thrown into the crowd and dragged across the grass to being taunted after the tournament by Nigeria’s Stanley Nwabari, the final between Senegal and Morocco exposed a pattern of unsporting behavior that had been smoldering throughout the tournament. The Beginning: The Importance of Goalkeepers and Towels In modern soccer, goalkeepers keep extra towels behind the…

Written by Ugo Inyama Trust is the silent currency that gives legitimacy to taxation. When the government is strong, it increases revenue through cooperation rather than coercion. Weak public finances make it difficult for even well-designed fiscal systems to function. For many Nigerians, paying taxes is like pouring water into a basket. Budgets have expanded, but results remain meager. While hospitals lack basic equipment, ministries are increasing. Politicians are becoming increasingly at ease even as the public is being told to tighten their belts. This rupture has disrupted the social contract that underpins sustainable revenue systems. The central challenge facing…

It usually begins in a familiar way.I saw the product on Instagram.The photo looks good.The comments seem reassuring. Send a DM. Seller responds quickly and warmly. Agree on the price and make the transfer.Then wait.The arrival of the product may be delayed. It may arrive by mistake. Sometimes they don’t arrive at all, or sometimes they stop responding. Other times, a package arrives and Nigerians openly joke about the “what I ordered and what I received” verdict. When this happens, many people do not escalate. They learned that pushing too hard often requires more judgment than support. So they sigh,…

The brother of a British man held in Nigeria after being the victim of an extraordinary drama has accused the British government of turning its back on him and called on Keir Starmer to “wake up” and “protect the British people”.Kingsley Kanu, the younger brother of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (Ipobu), a prominent banned separatist movement in Nigeria, said the British government had failed to intervene in his brother’s case.”To date, neither the previous nor the current government has been able to ask the Nigerian government to accept its position and stop it,” Kingsley said…

Several undocumented Nigerians and other Africans living in the UK are sleeping in street bins to avoid deportation. In 2025, the British government embarked on a major review of its immigration policy, dubbed the Transformation Plan. The policy has caused a wave of fear among immigrants, as those without legal status will be deported in mid-2025. The Home Office announced that 43 asylum seekers and criminals were repatriated to Nigeria and Ghana on chartered flights. The Home Office said: “Those deported had no right to remain in the UK, including 15 people who had unsuccessfully applied for asylum and 11…

“Don’t take Tylenol. Don’t take it. Fight like hell not to take it.” That was the message President Donald Trump and Secretary of Health Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sent in September when they announced that women should avoid Tylenol during pregnancy because of its link to autism. At the time President Trump issued his warning, the risks had not been substantiated by solid scientific evidence. Now, a group of researchers has responded with what may be the most thorough analysis of existing science on the subject yet.Their review, published Friday in the medical journal Lancet Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women’s Health,…

Nkiru sea lionOver the past few weeks, readings and videos of the poem “I AM A NIGERIAN” have been circulating on social media, with unknown origins. It has been sent to me several times as an unknown author, both in video and text format. First, I think it’s important to publicly acknowledge yourself as the author of the poem and talk about why you think it resonates now more than ever. I wrote a poem in 2006 called “I AM A NIGERIAN.” The impetus was three important influences. One was the “Heart of Africa” rebranding campaign by the then federal…

Atiku Abubakar, the son of former vice president and 2023 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate, has defected from the PDP to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and expressed support for President Bola Ahmad Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid. Popularly known as Abba, he was formally welcomed into the APC on Thursday by Deputy Senate President Balau Jibrin at the State House, along with other party leaders from the North East geopolitical zone. Party officials explained that the departure will be a major boost to APC’s efforts to unify the party ahead of the next general election. Speaking at the…