African Security Watch has ranked the Nigerian Army as Africa’s Best National Army in Counter-Terrorism Operations for 2025.

The prestigious award was formally presented to the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, at the Army Headquarters, Abuja, by Major General Teriworie Gagariga, who had earlier received it on behalf of the Nigerian Army during the African Security Watch Awards Ceremony in Banjul, The Gambia.

The recognition further affirmed the Nigerian Army’s growing reputation as a professional and highly capable institution whose operational doctrine, combat experience and institutional best practices continued to serve as valuable reference points for armed forces across the African continent.

The award underscored the Nigerian Army’s emergence as Africa’s leading force in Counter-Terrorism and Counter-Insurgency Operations (CTCOIN).

It reflected years of sustained, intelligence-driven operations that have significantly degraded terrorist networks, restored security to affected communities and contributed to regional peace and stability.

•The Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Walson-Jack, and Adeniyi Adeyemi, Director-General of the non-existent PFIPC,…Photo Credit: Composite

The Head of the Civil Service (HoS) of the Federation, Mrs Didi Esther Walson-Jack, told lawmakers that her office issued an “authorised establishment” to the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) without carrying out due diligence on the document submitted by the Director- General of the agency, Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi.

Walson-Jack admitted that due diligence would have exposed the documents, noting that an internal review triggered by the House investigation later revealed that they were fake.

“When this matter came up, I requested to see the documents myself and discovered that the establishment Act was not really an authentic Act,” she told the House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee probing the PFIPC saga.

During the appearance before the committee chaired by Rep. Yusuf Gagdi (APC, Plateau) on Wednesday, Walson-Jack explained that the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF) routinely processes requests from newly established agencies upon presentation of an enabling Act and letters of appointment, adding that officials acted on the documents submitted by representatives of the PFIPC.

“Mr Chairman, in other words, what we are saying is that my office received the letter of appointment and the Establishment Act and based on those documents and also based on the interaction with the representatives of the PEAC and PFIPC, we went on to issue the authorized establishment and later the Recruitment Waiver.

“We now, having seen all the facts and observed all the documents, concede that we ought to have carried out more due diligence in the discharge of the duties of the office in issuing an Authorised Establishment and a Recruitment Waiver to the PEAC/PFIPC,” she said.

The United States has announced a major visa shake-up across Africa, with routine visa services at its embassy in Abuja and 24 other diplomatic posts set to be discontinued effective August 1, 2026.

The US Department of State said that the realignment to regional hubs was part of efforts aimed at strengthening national security, cutting government waste, and ensuring more uniform screening, vetting, and adjudication standards.

According to a statement released by the State Department, President Trump’s administration is putting America and Americans first by realigning overseas operations to advance US priorities efficiently and effectively.

Other diplomatic posts affected by the routine visa realignment include Asmara, Bamako, Banjul, Brazzaville, Bujumbura, Conakry, Cotonou, Durban, Freetown, Gaborone, Harare, Juba, Libreville, and Lilongwe.

The rest are Lusaka, Maputo, Maseru, Mbabane, N’Djamena, Niamey, Nouakchott, Ouagadougou, and Windhoek.

The State Department stressed that the realignment does not change the operating status of any of the embassies and consulates or the important work they continue to conduct on behalf of the American people.It also clarified that the policy does not affect any currently valid US visas.

It explained that the immigrant visa categories being realigned include immediate relative, IR; family preference, FP; employment-based, EB; fiancée/fiancé, K visas; adoptions; diversity visas; and follow-to-join asylee and refugee, V92/V93, cases.

However, routine visa services, according to the State Department, will continue at US embassies and consulates in Lagos, Abidjan, Accra, Addis Ababa, Cape Town, Dakar, Dar-Es-Salaam, Djibouti, Johannesburg, Kampala, Kigali, Kinshasa, Lome, Luanda, Malabo, Monrovia, Nairobi, Port Louis, Praia, and Yaoundé.

The services to be provided at the hub locations include all routine nonimmigrant visas – tourist, business, and petition-based – as well as immigrant visas.