By Tony Obiechina, Abuja

The Ministry of Defence has affirmed its commitment to partner with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) to fully implement the NIMC Act 2026, leveraging integrated digital identity systems and identity verification to bolster national security operations.

The Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa stated this when he received the Director General/CEO of NIMC, Dr.

General Musa emphasised that robust interagency collaboration is crucial in addressing the dynamic nature of modern crime and threat environments, noting that tackling internal and external security challenges relies heavily on actionable data.

 “For us in the security sector, data is critical to know who we are dealing with, who we are expecting, and even those within us, because sometimes the enemy is within. It is therefore vital for us to be able to identify everyone accurately,” General Musa stated.

He added that the Ministry of Defence will continue to extend total support to all government institutions in alignment with its operational mandate.

Earlier, Dr. Abisoye Coker-Odusote highlighted that the visit was focused on discussing the strategic implementation of the NIMC Act 2026 and its pivotal role in strengthening Nigeria’s security architecture.

Both leaders agreed on the necessity of a secure, trusted, and interoperable digital identity ecosystem to improve identity verification, enhance defence operations, and foster seamless intelligence sharing across government agencies.

OPay, a leading fintech company in Nigeria, has announced the selection of the top 48
teams for the next stage of the OPay National Innovation Challenge, following an
overwhelming response from students across Nigeria.

The National Innovation Challenge is one of the three flagship initiatives under the newly
expanded OPay Scholars Programme, alongside the ₦1.

By David Torough, Abuja 

Macrostrat Nigeria Limited has called for stronger fiscal reforms and closer coordination between monetary and fiscal authorities following the Central Bank of Nigeria’s decision to retain all key monetary policy parameters at its 306th Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting.

The recommendation emerged from a national policy webinar titled “The CBN Decides: July 2026 MPC Decision,” hosted by Macrostrat on July 22, 2026, where leading economists and policy experts assessed the implications of the apex bank’s decision to maintain its tight monetary stance.

The CBN on July 21 voted unanimously to retain the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) at 26.5 percent, while leaving the Cash Reserve Ratio at 45 percent for Deposit Money Banks and 16 percent for Merchant Banks, maintaining the liquidity ratio at 30 percent, and keeping the asymmetric corridor at +50/-450 basis points.

According to Macrostrat, the decision reflects the CBN’s commitment to price and exchange rate stability amid easing inflation, global geopolitical uncertainties, volatile commodity markets, and anticipated election-related fiscal spending.

However, experts at the webinar warned that while the policy pause may help stabilize market expectations in the short term, persistently high interest rates continue to constrain private sector investment, job creation and economic expansion.

They argued that inflation in Nigeria remains largely driven by structural factors—including food supply disruptions, insecurity, high logistics costs, rising energy prices and infrastructure deficiencies—rather than excessive consumer demand, limiting the effectiveness of monetary tightening alone.

The panel also highlighted a disconnect between the official policy rate and prevailing money market rates, noting that high Cash Reserve Ratio requirements have locked significant banking sector liquidity at the CBN, reducing credit available to businesses and encouraging banks to invest in government securities instead of lending to the real sector.

Macrostrat called on the Federal Government and the CBN to adopt a coordinated policy approach by aligning fiscal and monetary measures, reforming the Cash Reserve Ratio framework, expanding targeted intervention funds for agriculture and manufacturing, and investing in power, transport and food supply infrastructure to tackle the structural drivers of inflation.

The firm further recommended narrowing the gap between official policy rates and market rates, improving debt issuance coordination, and establishing a joint macroeconomic policy coordination council involving the CBN, Ministry of Finance, Budget Office and Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment.

For businesses, Macrostrat advised companies to improve working capital management, optimize supply chains and hedge foreign exchange risks, while investors were encouraged to take advantage of elevated yields on Nigerian Treasury Bills and other short-term fixed-income instruments while closely monitoring global geopolitical developments.

Speaking through the policy brief, Macrostrat Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Justin Amase, said sustainable economic growth would require moving beyond monetary tightening to comprehensive structural reforms that address insecurity, energy shortages, logistics bottlenecks and domestic food production.

The webinar featured economists and policy experts including Dr. Ayo Teriba, Prof. Evans Osabuohien, Dr. Faith Iyoha, Prof. Comfort Amire, Dr. Adedeji Adeniran, Dr. Rislanudeen Mohammad, and Prof. Likita Ogba, who collectively agreed that lasting macroeconomic stability would depend on effective monetary-fiscal coordination rather than interest rate policy alone.