A Federal High Court in Abuja has handed down a heavy prison sentence to a female terrorism convict, locking her away for the next two decades.

Halima Haliru Umar will spend 20 years behind bars following her conviction for illegally carrying war-grade ammunition and attempting to aid terrorist activities in the country.

The presiding judge, Justice Hauwa Yilwa, delivered the judgment after the convict chose to admit to the core components of the charges preferred against her by the state.

Umar was initially intercepted and taken into custody by operatives of the Department of State Services in Plateau State.

Following her arrest, the secret police filed a four-count charge against her, touching on terrorism support and illegal possession of firearms.

When she was brought before the court for her formal arraignment on March 11, the defendant decided not to prolong the legal process. She entered a guilty plea to counts three and four of the criminal charge.

These specific counts centered on her being caught with 302 rounds of live ammunition meant for an AK-47 assault rifle, alongside her deliberate attempts to provide logistical or material backing to terrorist networks. 

Reviewing the judicial proceedings, Justice Yilwa emphasized that Umar’s decision to plead guilty on her first day of arraignment carried legal consequences.

The judge noted that by admitting guilt to the third and fourth counts, the defendant had legally accepted the facts of the crime as presented by the prosecution team. Consequently, she forfeited her right to mount a defense or challenge the evidence brought by the government.

Before the final sentence was handed down, the defense counsel, Hamza Dantani, made a passionate plea to the bench for judicial leniency. He urged the court to consider that his client was a first-time offender who had shown immediate remorse for her actions.

Dantani also stressed that she saved the court’s time by entering an early guilty plea rather than dragging out the trial.

Furthermore, the defense lawyer informed the court that the convict is a nursing mother. He revealed that her one-year-old infant was actually with her in custody at the time of her arrest by the secret police. Based on these humanitarian grounds, he begged the court to temper justice with mercy in sentencing.

On his part, the prosecution counsel, Callistus Eze, did not oppose the claim regarding her clean record. He confirmed to the court that the state had no prior criminal record or past convictions listed against the defendant.

After listening to the arguments from both legal teams, Justice Yilwa rose for a brief recess to deliberate on the appropriate punishment. Upon her return to the courtroom, she pronounced the final sentence, slamming Umar with a 20-year jail term for the third count and a one-year sentence for the fourth count.

However, the legal battles are not entirely over for the convict. Justice Yilwa subsequently fixed July 9 for the commencement of full trial regarding counts one and two of the charge sheet. Umar had previously pleaded not guilty to these remaining counts, forcing the prosecution to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt when the court reconvenes.

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Business mogul and African billionaire Aliko Dangote has said China currently dominates business across Africa because it is more willing than the United States and Europe to provide long-term financing and credit support for major industrial and infrastructure projects.

Mr Dangote made the remarks during an interview with Nicolai Tangen, chief executive officer of the Norwegian Sovereign Wealth Fund, where he gave a blunt assessment of the continent’s business relationships with global powers.

Asked who is helping Africa most in business among China, the U.S., and Europe, Mr Dangote replied: “Honestly, Nicolas, you want me to be very open? Totally. Yeah, so it’s China.”

According to him, China has “really dominated business in Africa because of the absence of the others.”

He said Chinese companies have succeeded by backing their businesses with strong state-supported financing structures that make it easier for African investors and governments to execute large projects.

Why China leads

Mr Dangote explained that Chinese suppliers often provide equipment on credit backed by export insurance institutions, allowing African businesses to spread payments over several years rather than paying upfront.

Using his cement business as an example, he said Chinese firms supply equipment and offer credit facilities backed by China’s export credit insurance agency, enabling buyers to finance projects over four or five years.

He noted that the arrangement gives Chinese companies a significant advantage over European competitors.

“If I go to Italy, for example, and they are asking me to write a cheque for a power plant of $500 million… and the Chinese are saying just give me 20 per cent, the rest I will finance for five years, which one are you going to take?” he said.

“Obviously, you take the Chinese one,” he added.

He said such financing structures help businesses preserve cash flow and expand faster rather than tying up capital in single projects.

“These ones will suck out my cash and I won’t be able to do more,” he said.

Expansion plans

Mr Dangote said access to financing is critical to the scale of growth his group is targeting, revealing that the company plans to spend about $45 billion between 2026 and 2030 on expansion projects.

“We want to do projects… we’re spending $45 billion between 2026 and 2030,” he said.

He added that large-scale industrial growth requires strategic leverage rather than overdependence on direct cash payments.

“For me to grow that big, I also need to leverage. I’m not going to over-leverage, but I need to leverage the business to be able to get to where I want to be,” he said.

U.S. showing renewed interest

Despite praising China’s role, Mr Dangote said the United States is beginning to show stronger interest in infrastructure financing in Africa.

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He referenced recent engagement with the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), saying the agency has become more aggressive in supporting infrastructure and industrial investments.

“This time around when I went to the Development Finance Corporation of the U.S… they were very hungry for infrastructure. They are very hungry for projects, and they are ready to lend,” he said.

According to him, that shift could create room for stronger U.S.-Africa business partnerships.

Mr Dangote also said he recently told a visiting Japanese delegation that Japan risked remaining absent from Africa’s major investment opportunities unless it changed its approach.

He said foreign partners coming to Africa must arrive with financing capacity, not just proposals.

“What I told them is that Japan will be missing for a very long time,” he said.

“Today when you are coming, make sure that you come with your own balance sheet on the table, because we have choices of buying from many other countries.”

His remarks highlight the growing competition among global powers for influence in Africa’s industrial and infrastructure sectors, where financing terms often matter more than technology alone.