•Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Walson-Jack

The Federal Government has commissioned 37 electric buses as the first batch of 100 approved under the Renewed Hope Mass Transit Programme.

Each of the electric buses can carry up to 200 passengers and cover at least 200 kilometres on a full charge.

The full deployment will be completed by December 2026.

The buses were unveiled on Wednesday at Eagle Square, Abuja, with the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Walson-Jack, describing the initiative as a significant step towards improving working conditions for government employees.

Walson-Jack described the commissioning as her “parting gift” to federal civil servants, coming less than 24 hours before the end of her tenure as Head of the Civil Service.

“What we have here is 37 buses, being the first instalment of the 100 Electric Buses,” she said.

She noted that transportation costs and challenges directly affect workers’ finances, safety, punctuality and productivity.

“For many Civil Servants, the daily commute shapes their finances, their safety, their punctuality, and ultimately their productivity,” she said.

The buses will initially operate on selected routes under a pilot phase before being expanded nationwide.

They will eventually be deployed to Federal Secretariats across the states to extend the benefits to civil servants outside Abuja.

The federal government, through the Federal Executive Council (FEC), has approved the acquisition of two communications satellites, NIGCOMSAT 2A and NIGCOMSAT 2B.

This was contained in a statement released by the Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited (NIGCOMSAT), and signed by the Acting Head, Corporate Affairs Division, Stephen Kwande.

He said that the satellites, to be deployed by Nigeria Communications Satellite Limited (NIGCOMSAT), are designed to expand Nigeria’s satellite capacity and strengthen broadband, broadcasting, enterprise and critical communications services.

NIGCOMSAT will lead implementation under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy.

The deployment is expected to extend connectivity to underserved, unserved and hard -to- reach communities, strengthen national communications resilience and increase Nigeria’s capacity to deliver satellite e-enabled services.

Gunmen have abducted a senior driver with Dangote Cement Company, Ibese Plant, Ogun State, Usman Umar, popularly known as “Baba Olowo,” in Yewa North local government area of the State.

A senior official of Dangote Cement, Ibese Plant, confirmed the incident, saying that Umar was reportedly abducted around midnight on Wednesday at Ajibawo Village, near Ijako-Orile, shortly after returning home from work.

The source said that the victim was attacked by three gunmen as he alighted from his motorcycle in front of his residence.

The assailants were said to have dragged him into a nearby bush while firing shots into the air to scare residents and prevent them from intervening.

The incident has reportedly prompted security operatives to commence efforts to locate the victim and apprehend his abductors.