Pope Francis has died, the Vatican has announced in a video statement.

The first Latin American leader of the Roman Catholic Church, died at the age of 88 at 7:35 am (0535 GMT) on Monday, said Cardinal Kevin Farrell in a statement published by the Vatican on its Telegram channel.

Francis had suffered various ailments in his 12 year papacy, with severe complications in recent weeks after a bout of double pneumonia for which he spent five weeks in hospital.

His death comes one day after a brief appearance before thousands of Catholic pilgrims gathered in St Peter’s Square for the Vatican’s open-air Easter Sunday mass.

Source: Aljazeera

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says that Nigeria faces significant uncertainty in its economic outlook despite wide-ranging reforms.

It, however, noted that the gains are yet to benefit all Nigerians with poverty and food insecurity remaining high.

Concluding its 2025 Article IV Consultations with Nigeria’s public policy executives during the week, IMF’s team, led by Axel Schimmelpfennig, its mission chief for Nigeria, acknowledged that Nigeria has taken important steps to stabilize the economy, enhance resilience, and support growth.

The IMF team had met with Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Yemi Cardoso, senior government and central bank officials, the Ministry of Environment, the private sector, academia, labour unions, and civil society.

Although the IMF representatives said these reforms have put Nigeria in a better position to navigate the external environment, the macroeconomic outlook remains marked by significant uncertainty.

They said that the elevated global risk sentiment and lower oil prices would impact the Nigerian economy.

They, therefore, recommended that macroeconomic policies need to further strengthen buffers and resilience, reduce inflation, and support private sector-led growth.

The final report of the consultations stated: “The Nigerian authorities have taken important steps to stabilize the economy, enhance resilience, and support growth.

‘‘The financing of the fiscal deficit by the central bank has ceased, costly fuel subsidies were removed, and the functioning of the foreign exchange market has improved.

‘‘Gains have yet to benefit all Nigerians as poverty and food insecurity remain high.

‘‘The outlook is marked by significant uncertainty. Elevated global risk sentiment and lower oil prices impact the Nigerian economy.

‘‘The reforms since 2023 have put the Nigerian economy in a better position to navigate this external environment. ‘‘Looking ahead, macroeconomic policies need to further strengthen buffers and resilience, while creating enabling conditions for private sector-led growth.

“The authorities communicated to the mission that they will implement the 2025 budget in a manner that is responsive to the decline in international oil prices. A neutral fiscal stance would support monetary policy to bring down inflation.

‘‘To safeguard key spending priorities, it is imperative that fiscal savings from the fuel subsidy removal are channeled to the budget.

‘‘In particular, adjustments should protect critical, growth-enhancing investment, while accelerating and broadening the delivery of cash transfers under the World Bank-supported program to provide relief to those experiencing food insecurity.

“A tight monetary policy stance is required to firmly guide inflation down. The Monetary Policy Committee’s data-dependent approach has served Nigeria well and will help navigate elevated macroeconomic uncertainty.

‘‘Announcing a disinflation path to serve as an intermediate target can help anchor inflation expectations.”

The Sole Administrator of Rivers State, Vice Admiral Ibok-Etteh Ibas (retd.), has denied reports claiming that he summoned the suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his deputy, Prof. Ngozi Odu, for questioning.

The claim, widely circulated on social media, was described by the state government as “false and misleading.”

In an official statement issued on Wednesday by the Permanent Secretary, Office of the Secretary to the State Government, Dede Friday, Ibas described the reports as “fraudulent announcements” deliberately spread to incite unrest.

“The Rivers State Government has become aware of fraudulent announcements circulating on social media, falsely attributed to the Office of the Secretary to the State Government.

“These malicious fabrications are designed to mislead the public, create panic, and disrupt the peace in Rivers State.

“One such false report claimed that Governor Fubara and his deputy had been summoned to the Government House to explain certain appointments and other state matters,” the statement read.