The Lagos Waste Management Authority, LAWMA, has launched a fresh enforcement operation to dislodge illegal street traders occupying road corridors and walkways around Tafawa Balewa Square, TBS, and the Costain Under Bridge/National Theatre axis.

The clearance operation, carried out in collaboration with the Kick Against Indiscipline, KAI, Corps, was aimed at restoring environmental order, curbing public nuisance and easing vehicular and pedestrian movement along the busy corridors.

Managing Director of LAWMA, Dr Muyiwa Gbadegesin, said the exercise was part of a sustained campaign to protect public infrastructure and ensure that public spaces were used for their designated purposes.

“Maintaining orderly public spaces requires sustained compliance,” Gbadegesin said.

He urged traders to vacate unauthorised road margins and relocate to government-approved markets.

Gbadegesin added that LAWMA would work with security and enforcement agencies to sanction activities that undermine environmental standards.

To prevent traders from returning to the cleared locations, he assured residents that routine monitoring and patrols would be sustained across the affected areas.

He also appealed to members of the public to support the state’s environmental laws by refraining from buying or selling in non-designated areas.

The Nigerian government has begun discussions with electricity distribution companies on the creation of Energy Zones to provide 24-hour electricity supply to homes, businesses and industries in major demand centres across the country.

The Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, held a closed-door meeting with the management of selected electricity distribution companies to discuss the proposed initiative.

The zones are planned for the Lagos axis, Abuja-Kaduna-Kano corridor and Enugu-Port Harcourt corridor.

The meeting was disclosed in a statement issued on Wednesday by the minister’s media aide, Adeola Adelabu.

According to the statement, the initiative is aimed at improving the reliability of electricity supply in areas with high commercial and industrial demand.

The proposed Energy Zones are also expected to address challenges in the distribution of electricity by ensuring that power generated and transmitted through the national grid can be taken up and delivered to consumers more effectively.

Tegbe said the challenges in the power sector were not limited to generation and transmission, but also included the ability of distribution companies to receive and deliver available electricity to consumers.

“The constraint on the sector is not limited to generation and transmission but includes how much power is taken up and delivered at the distribution end,” the minister said.

He said the proposed zones would help address the gap at the distribution end, while increasing commercial and industrial electricity demand and improving the revenue and collection performance of distribution companies.

Tegbe also reaffirmed the government’s commitment to expanding electricity infrastructure in areas with high demand.

He said electricity supply capacity must increase in line with the needs of Nigeria’s growing economy.

The proposed zones would focus on areas where reliable electricity supply is considered important to businesses, manufacturing and other productive activities.

However, the government has not announced a timeline for the implementation of the initiative.

It also did not disclose the expected electricity capacity of the zones or the specific infrastructure investments required to achieve 24-hour supply.

The meeting was attended by representatives of Abuja Electricity Distribution Company, Ikeja Electric, Eko Power, Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company and Sahara Energy Group.

The proposed Energy Zones are being considered amid continued concerns over the reliability of electricity supply and the capacity of distribution companies to deliver available power to consumers.

The initiative is also part of the Nigerian government’s broader plan to address challenges in the electricity sector and improve power supply for economic and industrial activities.

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu has assured Nigerians that his administration will bring down the cost of living.

Tinubu made the promise on Thursday during his nationwide broadcast to mark Nigeria’s 66th Independence Day anniversary.

According to him, Nigeria has enough land and people to feed the entire nation, stressing that his administration is focused on expanding mechanised irrigation and dry-season farming.

The President also promised that his government would improve access to seeds and fertiliser, increase mechanisation holistically, and invest in storage and transportation.

He added that his administration is building and completing the roads, railways and ports that connect farms and factories to markets.

“Our priority is to bring down the cost of living. We will achieve this by lowering the cost of producing and moving the things Nigerians consume.

“Our logic is simple. When a farmer produces more cheaply, when fewer crops are lost between the farm and the market, when a manufacturer spends less on electricity, when a truck reaches its destination faster, and when the business environment fosters fair competition, all those savings will ultimately find their way into the price of goods in the market.

“But prosperity requires more than cheaper goods. It requires productive work,” the President said.