This podcast reviewed Premium Times articles that investigate Russia's recruitment of young Africans, primarily women aged 18-22, to work at the Alabuga Special Economic Zone, a military-industrial complex manufacturing drones for the war in Ukraine. The reports expose deceptive recruitment practices, where promises of good salaries and skills training often lead to exploitative working conditions, strict surveillance, and difficulties in returning home. For men, the Alabuga program can directly lead to coercion into military service on the front lines in Ukraine, resulting in high mortality and trauma. A significant finding across the sources is the complicity or troubling inaction of various African governments, with some officials actively promoting the program despite evidence of human trafficking and the dangers faced by their citizens.
[This podcast was made with NotebookLM]
The source is an article published by Premium Times, a Nigerian investigative journalism platform, focusing on the booming but illicit tin mining industry in Plateau State. The article highlights how the rising global demand for tin, driven by the transition to renewable energy, has fuelled illegal mining operations, bypassing regulatory frameworks and denying the government revenue.
Despite the surge in production, the solid mineral sector remains a small contributor to Nigeria’s GDP. The article underscores the challenges faced by the government in tackling illegal mining and its impact on the local community.
[Credit: This podcast was produced using Google's NotebookLM]
This excerpt from the Premium Times website is an investigative report examining the financial dealings of former Nigerian National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki, and his alleged embezzlement of public funds. The report details how millions of dollars were transferred from Dasuki's office to a US-based couple, Robert and Mimie Oshodin, for purported consulting and special operations services.
The article highlights the purchase of luxury properties by the Oshodin couple in Los Angeles and Washington D.C. with these funds, suggesting a pattern of illicit financial flows and potential money laundering.
The report raises serious concerns about corruption within the Nigerian government and the role of the US in facilitating these activities through lax real estate regulations and a lack of enforcement.
Illegal mining in Kwara State is a growing concern with significant implications for the local economy and environment.
Credit: This podcast was created using Google's NotebookLM
Eedris Abdulkareem tackles president Tinubu in ‘Emi Lokan’ single
As the naira continues to perform poorly against the dollar, several small and medium-scale businesses have had to adjust their mode of operations to cut cost.
This is the case with Aisha Hashim, the under-30 CEO of Shakara Nourish Bowl.
A Premium Times podcast with Kabiru Adamu, CEO Beacon Security and Intelligence