Top stories for Monday, September 21, 2026:
🇳🇬 Nigeria - Main headlines
1. Tinubu skips UNGA, Shettima to lead delegation
President Bola Tinubu will not attend the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. He has directed Vice President Kashim Shettima to lead Nigeria's delegation instead.
2. Nigeria returns to FTSE Frontier Market today
After 3 years as 'Unclassified', Nigeria formally returns to the FTSE Russell Frontier Market classification from market open today, September 21. FTSE confirmed no material settlement or funding issues since T+1 implementation.
3. Economy watch
Record N18.7trn half-year FAAC revenue "undone by devaluation" — headline in Independent today.
Dangote Refinery IPO dominating the oil refining conference agenda
NGX market cap hit N162.16trn last week
4. Security / Enforcement
NSCDC parades its suspended Niger State Commandant and 21 officers over the deaths of 37 suspected illegal miners in custody last week in Wushishi/Lukoto.
NDLEA intercepted over 1.3m pills of tramadol/opioids and 6,000kg of cannabis worth over ₦3.4bn, including 603.75kg of Canadian Loud at Tin-Can Port, Lagos.
5. Politics 2027 starting early
Peter Obi (NDC candidate) challenged Tinubu, Atiku and others to hold direct town halls with Nigerians.
Isaac Fayose claims 5 APC governors are secretly funding NDC.
6. Sports
U-20 Women's World Cup: Falconets out — lost 1-0 to Colombia in Lodz after going down to 10 players.
Super Eagles: Victor Osimhen out of AFCON qualifiers vs Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau with muscle strain, replaced by Taiwo Awoniyi.
LaLiga drama: Real Madrid lost 2-1 to Atletico Madrid — Mourinho blamed refereeing after red card.
🌍 World today
1. US-China summit: Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit the US from September 23 to 25 at President Trump's invitation, for White House talks.
2. EU-Canada: French President Emmanuel Macron backed Canada's bid to become the EU's first associate member during talks in Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon.
3. International Day of Peace: Today is the UN's 45th International Day of Peace — 2026 theme is "Invest in Peace — For Everyone, Everywhere, Every Day".
4. Ghana: Today, Sept 21, is a public holiday for Founder's Day.
