In today’s Nigerian newspapers review programme, Today in the News, Vanguard leads with Nigeria’s annual food inflation rate reversing a six-month downward trend, rising to 12.2 per cent in February, from 8.89 per cent in January, driven by prices of beans, yam flour, cassava tuber, crayfish and other items.

Another headline features European leaders rejecting demands by the US President, Donald Trump, for help to clear the Strait of Hormuz, as foreign ministers from the European Union gathered in Brussels to discuss skyrocketing oil prices from the US-Israeli war on Iran.

Vanguard also reports that the Federal Government says the state governments account for about 48 per cent of total public expenditure in Nigeria, stressing that stronger coordination across all tiers of government will be critical to achieving the country’s economic development targets.

Moving to the next paper, The Guardian leads with the US–Israel–Iran conflict which has severely disrupted global aviation, triggering widespread flight suspensions and airspace closures, while soaring jet fuel costs have driven airlines to sharply increase fares, with some routes recording price spikes of over 100 percent.

The Punch leads with the Federal Government announcing it is finalising procedures and funding arrangements to evacuate Nigerians affected by the ongoing Middle East crisis.

Lastly, The Nation’s lead headline states that President Bola Tinubu and First Lady Oluremi Tinubu will depart Abuja today for a two-day state visit to the United Kingdom at the invitation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla, marking the first such visit by a Nigerian leader in decades.

Vanguard News