Business
NEM Insurance Staff Oduh Sunday Clinches 2026/2027 CIIN Ambassador Title
From right: Winner and New 2026 CIIN Ambassador, Mr. Oduh Sunday; 2nd Runners-up, Ms. Odeniyan Oluwatosin Comfort and 1st Runners-up of the Ambassador Contest, Mr. Okunnu Abdulrasheed Adekunle at the Year 2026 CIIN Insurance Week Grand Finale in Lagos yesterday.
BY NKECHI NAECHE-ESEZOBOR—Oduh Sunday of NEM Insurance Plc, yesterday emerged victorious in the 2026/2027 Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria Ambassador Competition, receiving a cash reward of N1.5 million and earning the title of the insurance industry’s newest ambassador.
The competition formed part of the major attractions at the grand finale of the CIIN Insurance Week and also represented one of the final official engagements of the institute’s current president, Yetunde Ilori.
Mr. Eddie Efekoha; Mr. Edwin Igbiti and Mrs. Yetunde Ilori.
Held from Friday, May 15 to Friday, May 22, 2026, the CIIN Insurance Week 2026 featured an extensive eight-day schedule focused on public interaction, professional discussions, learning activities, and celebrations within the insurance sector.
The Ambassador Competition evaluated contestants based on their understanding of the insurance profession as well as their capacity to carry out awareness initiatives.
Noor Takaful Insurance Limited staff, Okunnu Abdulrasheed Adekunle secured the first runner-up position and received N1 million, while another staff member of the same company, Ms. Odeniyan Oluwatosin Comfort, claimed the second runner-up spot with a cash award of N750,000.
In additional award categories presented during the event, the Police Service Commission was recognised as the Best Ministry, Department and Agency (MDA). Akunyili Samuel Chukwukadibia was honoured as the Best Insurance Student in the WAEC examination.
The award-winning student’s teacher, Mr. Awotoruvie Randy Kemi, also received recognition, while six secondary schools with outstanding student enrollment in insurance studies were celebrated.
The schools honoured included Ijaiye Ojokoro Senior High School, Badagry Senior Grammar School, Saint Peter’s College, Egba High School, Methodist Comprehensive College, and Ebenezer Grammar School.
Ogun State also received recognition as the state with the highest number of students enrolled for insurance studies in WAEC examinations.
Earlier in the programme, the InsurScenario Team emerged as champions of the 2026 CIIN InsurQuest Hackathon, defeating other competing teams including CoverBot, Mediclaim AI, Team Topsborg, Team Nexus, and The Risk Architects.
Now in its second edition, the hackathon attracted a broader mix of young innovators from across Nigeria and was designed to strengthen youth participation in the insurance sector while encouraging future insurance innovators.
The initiative exposed participants to practical industry problems and demonstrated how insurance can drive innovation, technology, entrepreneurship, and social impact. Over several weeks, contestants participated in masterclasses, hands-on workshops, and mentoring sessions aimed at building technology-based solutions for challenges affecting Nigeria’s insurance industry.
Supported by experienced professionals, the teams explored areas such as Inclusive Insurance, Data and Artificial Intelligence, Customer Experience, as well as ESG and Sustainability, while developing working prototypes suitable for pilot implementation.
All teams presented their projects during the InsurQuest Demo Day held on May 21, 2026, at the College of Insurance and Financial Management, where the InsurScenario Team finished in first place.
Speaking during the grand finale and award presentation, CIIN president Yetunde Ilori described the programme as her final appearance at the event in her capacity as president. She explained that the Insurance Week was created to bring together all segments of the insurance industry, improve public participation, encourage professional conversations, and promote insurance education and awareness.
According to her, the event, now in its second year, has become one of the strongest collective initiatives by Nigeria’s insurance industry to improve public understanding, boost insurance adoption, and recognise excellence within the sector.
She urged her successor to sustain and build upon the initiative, expressing confidence that the annual programme could further strengthen insurance acceptance and operations in Nigeria, with the aim of increasing industry penetration beyond one percent in the near future.
The post NEM Insurance Staff Oduh Sunday Clinches 2026/2027 CIIN Ambassador Title appeared first on Business Today NG.
Business
Supreme Court Upholds APP’s Registration, Ends Deregistration Battle Ahead of 2027 Elections
BY NKECHI NAECHE-ESEZOBOR—The Supreme Court has brought an end to the legal dispute over the status of the Action Peoples Party (APP), affirming that the party remains duly registered and eligible to take part in the 2027 general elections.
The apex court struck out Appeal No. SC/CV/248/2026 after the appellant, Mr Blessing Elujiuba, voluntarily withdrew the case, bringing the challenge to a close.
This decision leaves intact earlier judgments delivered by both the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal, which had upheld the party’s legal recognition.
The ruling was delivered on May 12, 2026, by a five-member panel of the Supreme Court led by Justice John Inyang Okoro, who noted that the matter was withdrawn without objection from other parties.
The court subsequently dismissed the appeal following its withdrawal, formally ending the proceedings at the apex level of the judiciary.
The case involved the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the Action Peoples Party (APP), and the party’s National Chairman, Uche Kingsley Nnadi.
The initial legal action had sought to force INEC to remove APP from its register on the allegation that it failed to meet constitutional requirements under Section 225A of the 1999 Constitution.
However, earlier rulings had found that APP met the necessary legal conditions for continued registration, citing evidence of electoral participation and victories at local government level.
The courts also upheld the interpretation that fulfilling any of the conditions outlined in Section 225A is sufficient for a political party to retain its registration status.
With all tiers of the judiciary aligned in its favour, APP’s legal standing remains intact, clearing the party to continue preparations for the 2027 elections without any outstanding court challenge.
The post Supreme Court Upholds APP’s Registration, Ends Deregistration Battle Ahead of 2027 Elections appeared first on Business Today NG.
The Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, said discussions on Nigeria’s nuclear power programme remain alive, amid continuous technical engagements with concerned authorities in the West African country.
Mr Grossi disclosed the progress made on the nuclear power arrangement with Nigeria while responding to a PREMIUM TIMES’ enquiry at an IAEA programme in Vienna, Austria.
The IAEA DG said the agency continues to work with Nigeria on its nuclear power plan and IAEA officials had held visits and technical meetings with relevant stakeholders to actualise the dream.
In May 2024, while on a visit to Nigeria for a seminar on ‘Promoting Cancer Awareness and Advocacy Programmes’, Mr Grossi expressed the agency’s readiness to support Nigeria’s efforts to develop a nuclear power programme during meetings with senior government officials, including the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume.
Speaking during the visit, he described Nigeria’s pursuit of nuclear energy as “a logical move for a country of your (Nigeria’s) size and importance.”
When this newspaper asked Mr Grossi about the progress of the discussions and technical meetings since the visit two years ago, the IAEA DG reassured that discussions are still ongoing.
“We have continued working with Nigeria, I have to tell you. It’s not that after that visit, things stopped. We have continued at technical levels, some visits, and technical meetings,” the IAEA DG said.
He noted, however, that no final decision has been taken on the programme, adding that Nigeria’s status as a big crude oil-producing nation makes its situation quite different from other economies.
“There hasn’t been a decision yet. There is like a pre-decision to explore the alternative. Of course, your country (Nigeria) is a big oil producer country, an exporter, etc. So the discussion in your country is different from that in other countries,” the DG said.
The IAEA boss insisted that the conversation around the programme is still alive, but Nigeria’s energy options are quite diversified.
“It’s a matter of diversification more than a matter of need, maybe. But the conversation space is pretty much alive, I must say,” Mr Grossi said.
Nigeria’s nuclear energy programme operates under the guidance and safety standards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), aiming to add clean, stable nuclear electricity to the national grid. The programme is managed primarily by the Nigeria Atomic Energy Commission (NAEC) and is said to be advancing through the foundational infrastructure phases and planning stages.
READ ALSO: Survival logic of nuclear deterrence: The Iranian, Israeli, and American conundrum, By Jacob Edi
Earlier in September 2023, Nigeria signed its Country Programme Framework (CPF) for the period of 2024–2029 on the margins of the General Conference. A CPF is the frame of reference for the medium-term planning of technical cooperation between a Member State and the IAEA and identifies priority areas where the transfer of nuclear technology and technical cooperation resources will be directed to support national development goals.
Nigeria has been an IAEA Member State since 1957 and, according to the agency, its 4th CPF covering the period 2024 – 2029 identifies five priority areas, such as nuclear and radiation safety and security; food and agriculture; health and nutrition; water and environment; as well as energy planning and development.
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