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Niger: Six soldiers killed in new attack near Chad
Six Nigerien soldiers were killed and 14 wounded on Monday night in an attack by “fifty” suspected jihadists on the military post of Blabrine (south-east Niger), near the border with Chad, the Ministry of Defence announced.
The provisional balance sheet also shows “17 dead on the enemy side”, while “weapons and ammunition have been recovered by the armed forces combing the area”, the ministry said in a statement read on public radio on Tuesday evening.
It did not specify the identity of the attackers, who are often identified as jihadists from Boko Haram or the Islamic State in West Africa (ISWAP) group, which was formed in a split from the Nigerian Boko Haram group.
According to the ministry, the attack was carried out “on the night of Monday 4 to Tuesday 5 July” at “around 1am” but “the reaction (of the soldiers) made it possible to repel the attack and to rout the enemy”.
This is the second attack in three days in south-eastern Niger, after the one on Sunday in which a soldier died in an assault by “Boko Haram elements” in Garin Dogo, near Nigeria.
Blabrine is located in the department of N’Guigmi (Diffa region) and borders Chad. Its military base has been targeted several times since 2015 by “terrorist” attacks.
In May 2020, 12 Nigerien soldiers were killed and ten injured in an attack attributed to Boko Haram, according to an official report.
At the end of October 2019, 12 Nigerien soldiers had already been killed and eight injured in an attack on the same base.
On a visit to the Diffa region at the end of June, Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum hailed “good results” and assured that the “war” against the Boko Haram jihadists and ISWAP was being “won”.
The Diffa region, bordering Nigeria and Chad, is home to 300,000 Nigerian refugees and internally displaced people, driven out by the abuses of Boko Haram and ISWAP, according to the UN.
Niger also faces the actions of Sahelian jihadist groups, including the Islamic State in the Great Sahara (EIGS), in its western part, where regular and bloody attacks target civilians and the military. -AFP
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GEXIM deepens relations with US EXIM Bank
A management team of the Ghana Export – Import Bank (GEXIM) led by the Acting Chief Executive, Sylvester Mensah met with the leadership of the Export–Import Bank of the United States (US EXIM) on Wednesday April 23, 2025 in Washington DC, United States of America.
The Acting President and Chairman of US EXIM, Mr. James C. Cruse and Vice President, International Relations, Ms. Isabel Galdiz received the GEXIM delegation, which included Deputy CEO for Banking, Mr. Moses Klu Mensah and Head of International Cooperation, Mr. Jonathan Christopher Koney at the headquarters of US EXIM.
The meeting offered the GEXIM team the opportunity to share the strategic direction of the Bank in line with the resetting agenda of the President of the Republic, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama for the repositioning of the Ghanaian economy into an export-led one by providing the requisite investment to Ghanaian businesses.
Mr. James C. Cruse expressed US EXIM’s eagerness to deepen its existing relations with GEXIM and proposed the signing of a new Cooperative Framework Agreement following the expiration of a Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2019 to utilize US EXIM’s medium term loan guarantees to procure machinery by GEXIM for qualified Ghanaian Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs).
Mr.Sylvester Mensah thanked the Acting President and Chairman of US EXIM for hosting the GEXIM delegation and reaffirmed the Ghanaian government’s commitment to strengthening trade and investment between Ghana and its global partners for economic transformation of Ghana with GEXIM playing a pivotal role.
The two teams will be meeting on the sidelines of the 2025 US EXIM Annual Conference on 29th and April 30, 2025 to explore possible areas of collaboration and matching Ghanaian businesses to American companies. The meeting ended with an exchange of gifts.
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Many SOEs have been used as mere instruments for personal wealth accumulation –Pres.Mahama
President John Dramani Mahama has expressed concern over the misuse of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) for personal financial gain by individuals in leadership positions.
Speaking during a meeting with Chief Executives of specified entities under the State Interest and Governance Authority (SIGA) on Thursday, March 13, the President directly attributed the dire state of SOEs to their leadership, accusing chief executives, management teams, and governing boards of prioritising personal enrichment over organisational efficiency.
He pointed to bloated budgets, unjustified allowances, and unnecessary expenditures as factors draining public funds while SOEs continue to rely on government bailouts.
“Many SOEs have been used as mere instruments for personal wealth accumulation by appointees. The chief executives, management, and boards of these enterprises are responsible for this situation. Some SOEs have become perennial loss-makers, draining public funds with bloated budgets, unjustified allowances, and unnecessary expenditures while relying on government bailouts as if entitled to them. Many of these entities are at their lowest point in the entire history of the Fourth Republic,” he said.
President Mahama further noted that many SOEs have been plagued by inefficiencies, corruption, and mismanagement, leading to consistent financial losses. He cited the 2023 State Ownership Report by the State Interests and Governance Authority (SIGA), which highlighted systemic inefficiencies and wasteful expenditures within these entities.
He therefore reaffirmed his commitment to reforming under-performing SOEs and ensuring they serve national interests.
He warned that loss-making SOEs will no longer be tolerated and will either be merged, privatised, or closed.
“I will assess you based on your performance. If you do not align with the pace of the reset agenda, you may be asked to step aside. If that adds to the horror movie, so be it,” he added.
Source: Myjoyonline.com
