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The Comptroller-General, Nigeria Customs Service, Adewale Adeniyi, on Monday said the organisation had spent over N70bn on several corporate social responsibility projects executed across the country in less than two years.

Adeniyi disclosed this in Modakeke, Osun State, while speaking with journalists on the sidelines of the commissioning of the renovated Ife Girls High School, Ile-Ife, Osun State, a CSR project executed by the NCS.

The Customs boss said the organisation had identified educational facilities in several schools across the country where interventions such as the renovation project could help improve learning environments and make education more attractive to young people.

He noted that funds for the implementation of the CSR initiative were drawn from the salaries of its operatives, adding that every Customs officer in the country had committed to donating a quarter of their annual salary to fund CSR projects.

“It was quite a sum that we have expended on the projects. I am happy that for the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in the Nigeria Customs Service, every Customs Officer we have committed to donating a quarter of our yearly salary to these projects.

“Last year, our budget for CSR into this was in the region of N70 billion, and from there we are able to commit what we have done in this school. You are all products of one school or the other and you don’t want to get to your school and see the level of infrastructural decay we met in this school.

“It is a challenge for all of us, and we have to take that as a responsibility. It is practically impossible for the government to do it all alone. The budget they have for education will not support this kind of renovation. Like-minded people, Parents Teachers Associations (PTAs), charitable organisations, and foundations will have to prioritise education as it concerns infrastructure,” Adeniyi said.

Speaking on the factors considered before the school where the project was sited was picked, Adeniyi said the school used to be a thriving female secondary school before it experienced infrastructural decay.

He described the level of decay before the NCS intervention as appalling, adding that the “Practical example was when we entered the laboratory we pursued squirrels and snakes before we can gain access. This is because was the whole place was bushy.

“Female children are particularly more necessary to us because of their special needs. I grew up in this community and this used to be a thriving female secondary school. We have them in their thousands and we are beginning to see a gradual reduction in number of enrollment in this school and as at the time we check before our intervention it was something around 200.

“This school is 60 years old we felt that we need to do this intervention so that girl-child education will be given the important place it deserves and I am happy that all other stakeholders are beginning to see that. This includes the old girls association, Osun State government and the Ooni of Ife.”

In her remarks, the school principal, Mrs Akinremi Iyabo, lauded the Nigeria Customs Service for the initiative and assured that the facilities would be properly maintained.

PUNCH Online reports that operatives of the Nigeria Customs Service pledged to donate four per cent of their annual wages to fund a Corporate Social Responsibility initiative.

The medium reported that the Comptroller-General of the NCS, Adewale Adeniyi, who announced the initiative while speaking at the launch of the initiative tagged “Customs Care,” noted that the pledge underscored the service’s dedication to making a positive impact on society by channelling a significant portion of its resources towards community-focused projects and initiatives aimed at improving the welfare of the public.

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The Nigeria Immigration Service has graduated 1,626 officers from its fourth combined and upgrading course 2026, with a charge to uphold professionalism in border security and migration management.

The passing-out parade was held at the Immigration Training School, Kano, and the Digital Bridge Institute, following the completion of the training programme designed to enhance the professional capacity of officers.

This was contained in a statement signed by the Service Public Relations Officer, DCI A.S. Akinlabi, on Sunday.

The Comptroller-General of Immigration, Kemi Nandap, represented by the Assistant Comptroller-General in charge of Human Resources Management, S.U. Agba, congratulated the graduating officers and urged them to uphold professionalism in the discharge of their statutory responsibilities.

Nandap stressed that technology “remains an important enabler in addressing contemporary border security and migration management challenges.”

She further reaffirmed the Service’s commitment to the “continuous training, upgrading and welfare of its officers.”

According to the statement, the Commandant of the Immigration Training School, Kano, A.N. Akuneme, said a record number of cadets were mobilised for the course, making it the largest training programme in the history of the school.

Akuneme urged the graduating officers to adapt to the changing dynamics of border management by facilitating “legitimate migration flows and preventing irregular migration and trans-border threats.”

The ceremony featured merit awards for outstanding participants, while its highlight was the inauguration of an ultra-modern market constructed by the course participants.

Representatives of various security agencies, as well as serving and retired senior officers of the NIS, were in attendance at the ceremony.

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The Kaduna State Government has recovered over 500,000 hectares of land that were hitherto under the control of bandits across the state.

The Commissioner for Information and Culture, Ahmed Maiyaki, disclosed this on Sunday during a gala night organised by his ministry, in honour of the members of the Kano Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists.

The members of the Kano Correspondents’ Chapel were in Kaduna for the 2026 Retreat, themed “2027 General Elections: Navigating Legal, Security and Ethical Challenges in the Media.”

Speaking to the journalists, Maiyaki said, “I’m happy to tell you that the present administration under the able leadership of Governor Uba Sani has, within the past three years, recovered over 500,000 hectares of land from bandits.

“As you know, without security you cannot achieve anything. Before now, farmers in such areas were unable to go to their farms due to the activities of the bandits.”

He noted that the activities of the bandits had, in the past, forced many travellers to stop travelling between Kaduna and Abuja.

“I’m happy to say that that has now become a thing of the past because the security situation in Kaduna State has greatly improved,” the commissioner said.

Maiyaki said the state government would continue to accord security priority attention as it remains the backbone of any meaningful development in the society.

He said as part of efforts to ensure massive food production, the state government had, under the 2026 farming season, distributed 500 trucks of fertiliser free to no fewer than 150,000 farmers across the state.

“In 2024, the government distributed 400 trucks of fertiliser to farmers free of charge. Similarly, 500 trucks of the commodity were distributed in 2025 in addition to the 500 trucks distributed to over 150,000 farmers in 2026,” he said.

On education, the commissioner said the state government had been able to reduce the number of out-of-school children from 550,000 to 187,000.

He said the government, in July 2025, purchased 100 CNG buses, which are being used to transport students and civil servants at cheaper fares to reduce the cost of transportation.

“From July 2025, no fewer than 3.5 million people have been transported with the vehicles, and nothing less than N3.8m has been saved for people.

“Even the Nigeria Labour Congress has confirmed that workers have saved 40 per cent of their income since the introduction of the CNG buses,” he added.

The chairman of the chapel, Murtala Adewale, appreciated the Kaduna State government for organising the gala night.