Nearly a year after President Bola Tinubu scrapped petrol subsidies, the World Bank has disclosed that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited is remitting just 50 percent of the revenue generated from the subsidy removal to the federation account — a development that now raises fresh questions about the transparency of Nigeria’s most critical revenue stream.

In its latest Nigeria Development Update released Monday, the World Bank noted that the NNPC only began remitting the fuel subsidy savings in January 2025, despite the president’s announcement of the subsidy removal in May 2023. The bank said the state oil firm is using the remaining 50 percent of the revenue to settle what it describes as past arrears, without clarifying the nature or origin of those debts.

“Despite the subsidy being fully removed in October 2024, NNPCL started transferring the revenue gains to the Federation only in January 2025,” the World Bank said. “Since then, it has been remitting only 50 percent of these gains, using the rest to offset past arrears.”

The revelation has added to public skepticism about the federal government’s claim that subsidy removal was a fiscal turning point for Nigeria, especially when millions of Nigerians continue to face worsening inflation, high transport costs, and mounting hardship.

The World Bank’s report aligns with recent concerns raised by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which in April called on Nigerian authorities to “increase transparency” in the oil sector, particularly in how funds from subsidy removal are managed.

“We have been commending bold reforms by the government, but we need to see a little more transparency in the oil sector to ensure that fuel subsidy removal can result in more flow of resources into government coffers,” an IMF official said during a press briefing last month.

According to the World Bank, the full revenue from subsidy removal could amount to as much as 2.6 percent of Nigeria’s GDP in 2024. However, it cautioned that unless these funds are completely transferred to the federation, the core goals of fiscal reform would be undermined. The bank emphasized that full remittance is critical for “sound fiscal management” and to prevent a slide back into deficit-driven spending.

NNPC Faces Forensic Audit, Anti-Graft Probe

The report comes just weeks after President Tinubu sacked the board of the NNPC Ltd amid growing public outcry over corruption allegations. Among those removed were former Group Chief Executive Officer Mele Kyari and board chairperson Pius Akinyelure. The president has since appointed Bayo Ojulari as the new GCEO and Ahmadu Kida as the non-executive chairman, in a shake-up aimed at cleaning house.

The NNPC is also under forensic audit, following years of alleged financial mismanagement that watchdog groups and government critics say have bled the country’s most lucrative industry. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is currently investigating top former officials of the oil company.

A letter obtained by Premium Times and dated 28 April, with reference number CR:3000/EFCC/ABJ/HQ/SDC.2/NNPC/VOL.1/698, requested the company’s management to submit certified salary and allowance records for 14 officials, including those who have retired.

This investigation includes former NNPC CEOs Mele Kyari and Abubakar Yar’Adua, both accused of abusing office and misappropriating funds during their respective tenures.

Lingering Transparency Questions Over Subsidy Funds

When Tinubu announced the end of the petrol subsidy during his inaugural address in May 2023, the move was lauded as a courageous step to plug Nigeria’s fiscal holes. However, the delay in NNPC’s remittance and the lack of public clarity about how the revenue is being used have led to mounting suspicion, especially as the government’s claim to have removed subsidies was belied by its reappearance through indirect means.

This backdrop has compounded the opacity surrounding NNPC’s arrears and deductions, becoming a growing point of tension between the government and its international partners.

World Bank Warns on Budget Risks and Rising State Revenues

Beyond oil revenue, the World Bank also flagged fiscal risks in the implementation of Nigeria’s 2025 budget, warning that overly ambitious revenue projections could result in a wider-than-expected budget deficit. While the federal government aims to increase capital spending, the World Bank urged caution, recommending that any such moves be anchored in a broader fiscal consolidation framework.

“The budget aims to boost capital spending, and this must be done sustainably, within the broader objective of fiscal consolidation to complement monetary policy and achieve an overall policy mix that maintains fiscal discipline and brings down inflation,” the report said.

It added that states, not just the federal government, have a major role to play in ensuring efficient expenditure and transparent governance. Notably, the report highlighted that state governments received a combined N13.8 trillion in 2024, more than the federal government’s N12.3 trillion share.

With these figures, the World Bank noted that improving service delivery, closing infrastructure gaps, and cutting waste would depend not only on more revenue but also on how that revenue is spent.

The latest disclosure puts President Tinubu’s administration in a tight spot. While the president continues to tout subsidy removal as a necessary reform, the inability to fully account for the gains raises uncomfortable questions about the sincerity of the government’s fiscal plans and whether the gains are being diverted before they ever reach the national treasury.

On Tuesday, Google took the stage at the Android Show, just ahead of Google I/O, to unveil a transformative array of security and privacy enhancements for Android.

These advancements, meticulously crafted to shield users from scams, secure stolen devices, and strengthen device-level defenses, mark a significant step forward in addressing the evolving landscape of cyber threats. With protections spanning call safety, screen-sharing safeguards, messaging security, theft prevention, and system-wide fortifications, Google is weaving a comprehensive safety net for Android users.

Many of these features will debut with Android 16, while others extend to devices running as far back as Android 6, ensuring broad accessibility.

Safeguarding Calls Against Phone Scams

The scourge of phone scams, where attackers manipulate users into clicking malicious links or installing harmful apps, lies at the heart of Google’s call protection strategy. For Android 16, Google is introducing dynamic safeguards that activate during calls with unknown contact numbers not stored in a user’s contact list. These measures prevent users from sideloading apps from unverified sources, such as web browsers or messaging apps, during such calls, effectively blocking scammers from sneaking malicious software onto devices.

Similarly, the system bars apps from gaining accessibility permissions, a tactic often exploited to grant scammers remote control. To ensure continuous vigilance, Google is also locking down Google Play Protect on devices running Android 6 or later, preventing users from disabling this critical app-scanning tool during calls. This real-time intervention creates a robust barrier, alerting users to potential scams and halting risky actions when they’re most vulnerable.

Strengthening Screen-Sharing Defenses

Screen-sharing, a growing avenue for fraud, is another focal point. Scammers frequently pose as trusted entities to trick users into exposing sensitive information during shared sessions. Google’s response is twofold. First, Android devices will now prompt users to stop sharing their screens once a call ends, reducing the chance of inadvertently leaking data.

Second, in a targeted pilot with select U.K. banks, Google is testing a warning system for devices running Android 11 or later. When a user opens a partner bank’s app while sharing their screen during a call with an unknown number, a prominent alert warns of a possible scam, complete with a button to instantly end the session. This initiative, currently localized to the U.K., showcases Google’s willingness to collaborate with industry partners to tackle region-specific threats, with potential for global expansion if the pilot proves effective.

Fortifying Google Messages with AI and Encryption

In the realm of messaging, Google Messages is undergoing a significant security overhaul. Building on an AI-driven anti-scam feature launched in March 2025, Google is enhancing its on-device detection to identify a broader spectrum of fraudulent schemes, including cryptocurrency scams, gift card fraud, toll road and billing fee ruses, financial impersonation, and fake technical support.

By analyzing conversation patterns locally, this system alerts users to threats without compromising privacy, offering a seamless yet powerful layer of protection. Complementing this, Google is introducing verification keys to the Google Contacts app, set to launch in summer 2025 for Android 10 and later. This feature allows users to authenticate contacts via QR code scanning or number matching, ensuring end-to-end encrypted conversations in Google Messages. If an attacker hijacks a contact’s number through a SIM swap, the app flags the conversation as “unverified,” providing a clear visual cue to users. This blend of AI and encryption fosters trust and security in digital communications.

Locking Down Stolen Devices

Device theft, a persistent threat, is addressed through a suite of protections that render stolen phones nearly unusable and safeguard user data. Google’s Identity Check, previously exclusive to Pixel and Samsung devices with OneUI 7, is expanding to other manufacturers with Android 16. This feature mandates biometric authentication—such as fingerprint or facial recognition—for critical actions like changing a PIN, updating biometrics, disabling theft protection, or accessing Passkeys, but only when the user is outside trusted locations.

Reinforcing the Android Ecosystem

Later in 2025, Google will bolster Factory Reset protection, restricting core functions on devices reset without the original lock pattern, PIN, or Google account credentials, making stolen phones less appealing to thieves. To counter remote locking attempts, a new security challenge question adds an extra authorization step. Additionally, Android 16 will hide one-time passwords when a device is offline and hasn’t been recently unlocked, thwarting attackers seeking to intercept sensitive codes.

Beyond these targeted protections, Google is fortifying Android’s broader ecosystem. Google Play Protect’s live detection, available in the coming months for Android 6 and later, will gain the ability to spot apps with hidden or altered icons, a common hallmark of malicious software. New on-device rules will further expand its ability to catch diverse categories of harmful apps, ensuring comprehensive threat coverage.

For high-risk users like public figures, Google is enhancing its Advanced Protection Mode with tailored on-device features, though specifics remain under wraps. Meanwhile, the debut of Find My Hub introduces a user-friendly way to track items, friends, and family, seamlessly integrating security with everyday convenience.

The rollout of these features is strategically timed to maximize impact. Android 16 will usher in call protections, Identity Check expansion, and one-time password safeguards, while Factory Reset enhancements and Google Play Protect upgrades are slated for late 2025 and the near term, respectively. The Google Messages verification keys will arrive in summer 2025, and the U.K. banking app warning system remains in testing, with its future expansion contingent on success.

The U.S. Department of Commerce on Tuesday formally scrapped the Biden-era “Artificial Intelligence Diffusion Rule,” a sweeping regulation that would have placed tiered restrictions on the export of advanced American-made AI chips to dozens of countries. The rule was due to take effect on May 15, 2025.

The reversal, announced just days before the implementation date, marks a sharp policy shift under the Trump administration, which is now pushing for more targeted and bilateral agreements rather than blanket export controls.

“The Trump Administration will pursue a bold, inclusive strategy to American AI technology with trusted foreign countries around the world, while keeping the technology out of the hands of our adversaries,” said Jeffrey Kessler, U.S. Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security.

What the Biden Rule Sought to Do

The AI Diffusion Rule, first introduced in January 2025, aimed to restrict the global export of high-performance AI chips, especially to nations the U.S. considers adversarial, such as China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea. The rule proposed a three-tier system, classifying countries based on perceived risk and alignment with U.S. strategic interests:

• Tier 1, which included allies like Japan and South Korea, would have faced no restrictions.
• Tier 2, including countries like Mexico and Portugal, would have seen AI chip export restrictions for the first time.
• Tier 3, comprising countries like China, Russia, and Iran, would have faced even tighter restrictions than the current regulations allow.

The goal, according to the Biden administration at the time, was to slow the proliferation of high-end U.S. semiconductors capable of training and running advanced AI models that could be used in military, surveillance, or authoritarian systems abroad.

Trump Administration’s New Direction

The Department of Commerce has now halted enforcement of that rule and said it will issue a replacement in the coming months. The new approach is expected to focus on direct negotiations and country-specific frameworks rather than imposing universal restrictions.

On Tuesday, the Department issued interim guidance for U.S. companies and chipmakers. The guidance reinforced existing bans on exports involving Huawei’s AI chipsets.

“Using Huawei’s Ascend AI chips anywhere in the world violates U.S. export rules,” the Commerce Department reminded companies.

It also issued warnings on the consequences of letting U.S. chips be used in China to train AI models and urged firms to bolster security protocols against the diversion of sensitive hardware.

The policy reversal has been met with relief from American chipmakers, particularly NVIDIA and AMD, whose products had been at the center of the proposed rule. NVIDIA’s high-end graphics processing units (GPUs) are widely considered the gold standard for AI training and deployment.

Following the announcement, NVIDIA stock surged more than 3% to $130.15 by market close, while AMD saw a 1.8% gain. The market response underscores investor optimism about restored export opportunities and reduced regulatory friction in international sales.

“At a time of platform shifts, you kind of want to make sure you lean into even the new design wins, and you just don’t keep doing the stuff that you did in the previous generation,” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said in January, during an earlier earnings call when discussing AI growth and go-to-market strategies.

While Nadella was speaking in the context of Microsoft’s own AI cloud ambitions, the statement aligns with a broader industry push to keep pace with rapid innovation rather than be hampered by broad regulatory limitations.

Rising Stakes in the Global AI Race

The stakes in global AI development have risen dramatically over the past two years. The United States has increasingly tightened controls over technology exports to China, especially after growing concerns that advanced AI chips could be used for military modernization and surveillance.

The Biden administration’s AI rule was part of a broader national security framework, building on earlier chip export bans that were already in place. However, critics had warned that the overly broad scope of the new rule could backfire, pushing neutral countries toward Chinese suppliers or prompting retaliation against U.S. tech interests abroad.

The Trump administration appears to be betting on diplomacy and strategic alliances as a better pathway to securing America’s technological edge by shifting to bilateral arrangements.

While the Commerce Department has not released details on the replacement rule, officials have signaled that it will involve direct coordination with foreign governments and allow more case-by-case discretion.

“We reject the Biden Administration’s attempt to impose its own ill-conceived and counterproductive AI policies on the American people,” said Secretary Kessler.

In the meantime, companies are being asked to continue complying with existing export laws, particularly concerning entities on the Commerce Department’s Entity List, which includes firms like Huawei and Chinese military-linked research institutions.

The Department has not indicated a timeline for the new rule’s release, but industry stakeholders are likely to lobby for a framework that balances national security with the flexibility to remain globally competitive in a fast-moving AI race.