The federal government has advised Nigerians travelling to Europe and the United States to take extra precautions to avoid being dispossessed of their belongings.
Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, gave the advice on Monday in Abuja at the fifth edition of the ‘President Muhammadu Buhari (PMB) Administration Scorecard 2015-2023 Series’.
The minister lamented that it has come to the attention of the government that Nigerian travellers to the United States and some countries in Europe were having their belongings, especially money and international passports, stolen at an increasingly high rate.
The scorecard series was organised by the Ministry of Information and Culture and the fifth edition witnessed presentations by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Mohammad Abubakar.
Mohammed said the incidences had reached an increasingly high rate and therefore the need for travel advisory.
The most recent victims, according to the minister, were travelers to the UK, most of whom were dispossessed of their belongings at high-brow shops, particularly in the high street of Oxford.
He said, “We have therefore decided to advise Nigerians travelling to Europe and the United States to take extra precautions to avoid being dispossessed of their belongings.
“This is not your typical travel advisory. Issuing such is the prerogative of our embassies/high commissions as well as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.”
He noted that it was merely a piece of advice to Nigerians who may be visiting the affected parts of the world.
Speaking on the scorecard series, he said it was designed to showcase the achievements of President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration.
Speaking at the event, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development attributed the increase in the prices of fertliser and its production components globally to the impacts of COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and the Russia-Ukraine war.
He said that Nigeria was not insulated from the global impacts and inflationary trend.
The minister assured that the federal government of Nigeria would continue to mitigate the impacts and implement policies and programmes that would cushion the effects of high cost of fertiliser.
