Nigeria's First Lady Oluremi Tinubu champions early childhood development and urges celebrities to aid the poor

During a meeting at the State House in Abuja, First Lady Oluremi Tinubu welcomed a World Bank delegation led by Country Director Matthew Verghis. She reaffirmed the government’s commitment to early childhood development (ECD), describing it as Nigeria’s most critical long‑term investment and urging a multi‑sectoral approach that includes nutrition, health, education and sanitation. The World Bank highlighted the high returns of investing in children from pregnancy to age five and stressed Nigeria’s partnership as essential to meeting its global development targets.

At the same time, Tinubu inspected the National Community Food Bank Project for North Central Nigeria and called on prominent Afrobeats artists—including Burna Boy, Davido and Asake—to pool resources and establish a charitable foundation for low‑income Nigerians. She said luxury cars are fine, but the stars’ wealth could significantly ease the government’s burden on the poor.

She also presided over the commissioning of the Bwari Satellite Town water‑supply network, offering a prayer that “there shall be no more death or barren land” and invoking biblical verses for national healing. Earlier remarks suggesting beneficiaries of a petty‑trader grant could reinvest in selling akara and other snacks sparked public debate, which Tinubu later clarified as an effort to support small‑scale traders.