Finance
CNN’s #MyFreedomDay returns to unite students in global fight against modern-day slavery


BY: Sandra Ani
CNN’s #MyFreedomDay – a one-day, student-driven social media event to raise awareness of modern-day slavery – returns on March 14.
Driving this year’s #MyFreedomDay is one simple question: ‘What makes you feel free?’ CNN is asking young people to share their responses via text, photo or video across social media using the #MyFreedomDay hashtag.
Last year’s call to action saw students from more than 100 countries take part, and the #MyFreedomDay hashtag was used far and wide with 1.4 billion global Twitter impressions and 20million Instagram timelines reached.
This year looks to be even bigger with CNN correspondents reporting from schools all over the world including Poland, Hong Kong, Kenya, South Korea, Lebanon, the UK and the US. Special coverage kicks off at 12:30pm ET on March 13 with a half-hour special hosted by Zain Asher, and continues onthrough March 14 with a special #MyFreedomDay edition of CNN Talk at 7am ET and live reports from participating schools throughout the day.
CNN will also showcase what these students, schools and communities are doing to fight slavery on Facebook, at @CNNFreedom on Twitter and Instagram and at CNN.com/myfreedom.
Leading up to #MyFreedomDay, CNN will air a new documentary film highlighting the plight of 20,000 children working as slaves on fishing boats in Lake Volta, Ghana.
Sold by their parents for $250 – $150 – or in some cases exchanged for livestock – these children are forced to work from dawn to dusk untangling fishing nets in the murky waters of one of the world’s largest man-made lake.
Premiering March 1 at 2:00pm ET, ‘Troubled Waters: A CNN Freedom Project Documentary’ both exposes this terrible practice and spotlights the aid workers and government officials working to rescue the children.
The film is the first in a series of documentaries to be co-produced with theKulczyk Foundation, and replays on Sunday, March 3 at 6am and 9:30pm ET and Tuesday, March 5 at 12:30pm ET.
#MyFreedomDay 2019 sizzle reel: https://cnn.it/2S3t7kQ
The CNN Freedom Project microsite: https://cnn.it/2oYYfpx
The CNN Freedom Project produces original reports, articles and documentaries on human trafficking in all of its forms – from debt bondage in India to sex trafficking rings in Southern California and African slaves in the Sinai desert.
Since its launch in 2011, the multi-award winning CNN Freedom Project is among the most successful and highly visible programming initiatives on CNN International.
It has generated more than 500 investigative stories of modern-day slavery from across five continents.
Various NGOs report that these CNN Freedom Project stories have contributed to changing laws and corporate policies, led to more than 1,000 survivors receiving assistance and sparked more than $24 million in donations to anti-trafficking organisations.
Finance
Tinubu Launches Personal Income Tax Calculator to Improve Compliance, Fairness
By ORJI ISRAEL


President Bola Tinubu has launched a Personal Income Tax Calculator to help Nigerians work out their tax obligations under the new tax law.
The tool is expected to make compliance easier and improve transparency in the system.
In a post on his X page, the president said the calculator shows how the recent reforms protect low-income earners while ensuring fairness.
“A fair tax system must never punish poverty or weigh down the most vulnerable. With the new tax laws I recently signed, taking effect from January 2026, we have lifted this burden and created a path of equity, fairness, and true redistribution in our economy,” Tinubu said.
Some months ago, he signed four major tax bills into law to bring Nigeria’s scattered tax system under one framework. These include the Nigeria Tax Administration Law, which sets out a uniform process for tax administration across federal, state, and local governments; the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, which replaces the current Federal Inland Revenue Service Act with a stronger, more independent revenue agency; and the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) and Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Bill, which creates a formal structure for cooperation between revenue bodies at all levels.
The introduction of the tax calculator, together with these reforms, is expected to reduce confusion for both individuals and businesses, while also making it easier for them to meet their obligations and contribute to national growth.
Tinubu added that the reforms are part of building renewed hope for the economy and urged Nigerians to trust in the country’s future for themselves and their families.


The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) says that no fewer than 1,000 companies, representing 20% of total eligible firms, have begun integrating its newly launched electronic invoicing (e-invoicing) system less than two weeks after it went live.
The FIRS e-invoicing platform, which went live on August 1, 2025, after a successful pilot phase that began in November 2024, was designed to modernise Nigeria’s tax administration, curb evasion, and enhance transparency in revenue generation. It also provides the FIRS with real-time visibility into commercial transactions, ensuring authenticity and completeness of invoices.
According to a statement by Dare Adekanmbi, special adviser on Media to FIRS Chairman Zacch Adedeji, at least 1,000 companies, representing 20% of more than 5,000 eligible firms, have already adopted the system and begun integrating with the FIRS platform.
Adekanmbi noted that the initiative, also known as the Merchant-Buyer Model, will be rolled out in phases. “Large taxpayers, which are companies with annual turnover of N5 billion and more, are expected to be the first to be onboarded on the platform,” he said.
FIRS revealed that MTN Nigeria was the first taxpayer to transmit live electronic invoices to the platform, while Huawei Nigeria and IHS Nigeria have concluded test transmissions and are expected to go live soon.
The agency added that the initial compliance deadline of August 1, 2025, has been extended by three months to accommodate companies currently facing onboarding challenges. The new deadline is now November 1, 2025.
Finance
NGX Boss, Umaru Kwairanga, to Chair Business Journal Fintech Roundtable 2025
By Our Correspondent


Dr. Umaru Kwairanga, Group Chairman, Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) will Chair the 2nd Business Journal Fintech & Financial Inclusion Roundtable 2025 scheduled for Friday, August 29, 2025 at Oriental Hotel, Lekki, Lagos. Time is 10-am prompt.
The theme of the Roundtable is: Fintech & Financial Inclusion: The Opportunities & Challenges for Nigeria.
In a statement, Prince Cookey, Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Business Journal Media Group said the choice of Umaru Kwairanga to chair the event is a reflection of his immense and chequered journey in the Nigerian economic system over the years.
“Dr. Umaru Kwairanga is a noted player in the Nigerian economy and financial services sector. Over the years, he has carved a positive niche in driving the narrative in national policy formulation, implementation and review. He remains a worthy point of reference and role model to current and future players in the Nigerian economy.”
Alhaji (Dr.) Umaru Kwairanga, Sarkin Fulani Gombe and Group Chairman, Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX), is a notable player in the Nigerian corporate world, a thorough-bred professional and a prominent community leader in Gombe State and the North East region.
He has served at the highest levels of the banking, pension, investment, manufacturing and commercial sectors of Nigeria’s economy. He is the current Chairman of the Nigerian Exchange Group Plc, Nigeria’ oldest stock exchange and also Chairman of Tangerine General Insurance Limited.
The NGX Chairman is also a Director on the Boards of First Bank Senegal Limited, Tangerine Apt Pensions Limited and the Group Managing Director of Finmal Finance Services Limited.
He is a past Chairman of Ashaka Cement plc and previously served on the Boards of Jaiz Bank Plc, Central Securities Clearing System Plc, Lafarge Africa Plc and First Bank Mortgages Limited to mention a few.
Professionally, Alhaji Kwairanga is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers, Chartered Institute of Directors of Nigeria, the Certified Pension Institute of Nigeria and the Abuja Commodities and Securities Exchange.
He is also a Council Member of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers; the Chartered Institute of Directors and he is the current President of the Certified Pensions Institute of Nigeria.
Kwairanga is a holder of the prominent traditional title of Sarkin Fulani Gombe and has led several initiatives for peace and development in Gombe State and the North East region in general.
He has also been involved in policy and strategy formulation in the public sector as a Member of the Vision 2020 Committee, the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Nigerian Industrial Revolution Plan and several committees of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
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