The United Kingdom (UK) would not be finalising the deal to transfer control of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius until the United States of America’s (USA) President-elect, Donald Trump is inaugurated and consulted.

This delay, according to ITVx, stems from concerns within Trump’s inner circle, particularly regarding the strategic Diego Garcia military base, which is used by both the U.S. and the UK.

The UK government emphasised on Wednesday that it will only agree to a deal “that is in the UK’s best interests and protects our national security.”

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On Mauritius’ request for further discussions, the prime minister’s spokesman, Matthew Doyle, added, “It is obviously now right that the new U.S. administration has the chance to consider this and discuss this once they are in office.”

On her part, Mauritius has confirmed that further negotiations will take place, with Attorney General Gavin Glover returning to London for more talks.

It was gathered that the UK has made a decision to cede sovereignty over the British Indian Ocean Territory to Mauritius, while leasing the Diego Garcia base back to the U.S. for an estimated £90 million annually.

Mauritian Prime Minister, Navin Ramgoolam did not sign off on the previous deal and is sending a delegation back to London for additional negotiations.

Pressed on if this meant the UK would not finalise the deal before Trump’s inauguration on January 20, the spokesman reiterated, “You can take from what I have just said about that, the new U.S. administration.”

While Sir Keir Starmer defended the plan in Parliament, asserting that it “delivers the continued effective operation of the base,”

On her part, conservative leader Kemi Badenoch, has frowned at the negotiations, describing it a “secret deal to surrender British territory.”

The Mauritian government remains steadfast in its pursuit of the islands, with a statement confirming that the Cabinet has been briefed on developments following last week’s talks in London.

“The commitment and resolve of Mauritius to reach an agreement and end this long battle for sovereignty remains unshaken,” the statement read.

There indications that the Chagos Islands, part of the British Indian Ocean Territory, remain highly contentious, attracting diverse interests from different ccountries.

The forced removal of the indigenous Chagossian people in the 1960s and 1970s to accommodate the U.S. military base has sparked ongoing legal and human rights battles.

The International Court of Justice ruled in favour of Mauritius, though the UK has yet to implement the ruling.

Nigeria’s President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has congratulated six distinguished Diaspora Nigerians named by President Joe Biden among the 400 recipients of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) in the United States.

This was contained in a statehouse statement in Abuja, on Thursday by the Special Adviser to the President (Information & Strategy) Bayo Onanuga.

Biztellers reports that the prestigious recognition was established by former President Bill Clinton in 1996, and remains the highest honour bestowed by the United States government on outstanding scientists and engineers at the early stages of their careers.

This year’s awardees, announced by President Biden on January 14, 2025, are employed or funded by 14 participating United States government agencies.

The Nigerian honorees include Azeez Butali, Gilbert Lilly Endowed Professor of Diagnostic Sciences, College of Dentistry, University of Iowa; Ijeoma Opara, Associate Professor of Public Health (Social and Behavioral Sciences), Yale School of Public Health, Yale University; and Oluwatomi Akindele, Postdoctoral researcher at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

Others are Eno Ebong, Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering, Bioengineering, and Biology at Northeastern University; Oluwasanmi Koyejo, Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Stanford University; and Abidemi Ajiboye, Executive Vice Chair of the Case School of Engineering, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Case Western Reserve University.

President Tinubu commends these trailblazing Nigerians for their remarkable achievements in medical sciences, technology and engineering.

President Tinubu maintained that recognising these exceptional talents underscores Nigerians’ vast potential to excel both at home and on the global stage.

He looks forward to the honorees sharing their multidisciplinary expertise to benefit Nigeria’s development efforts under the Renewed Hope Agenda.

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has reported a sharp rise in the retail prices of petrol and diesel across Nigeria.

In its Petrol Price Watch for November 2024, released in Abuja on Thursday, the NBS revealed that the average retail price of a litre of petrol rose to N1,214.17, an 87.10% increase from N648.93 recorded in November 2023.

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The report also noted that the price increase between October and November 2024 was 2.48%, with the average retail price in October standing at N1,184.83.

Petrol Prices Across States

According to the NBS, Benue recorded the highest average petrol price in November 2024 at N1,365.16 per litre, followed by Borno (N1,331.94) and Adamawa (N1,319.85).

On the other hand, the states with the lowest prices were Lagos (N1,092.79), Katsina (N1,121.25), and Kano (N1,152.86).

Regionally, the South-East Zone recorded the highest average price of petrol at N1,257.72, while the South-West Zone had the lowest at N1,153.94 per litre.

Diesel Prices Rise by 37% Year-on-Year

In its Diesel Price Watch for November 2024, the NBS reported that the average retail price of diesel also increased significantly.

The price climbed to N1,446.83 per litre in November 2024, a 37.07% increase compared to N1,055.57 per litre in November 2023.

Month-on-month, diesel prices rose slightly by 0.38% from N1,441.28 recorded in October 2024.

State-by-State Diesel Prices

The highest diesel prices in November were recorded in Bauchi (N2,232.04), Taraba (N1,770.59), and Borno (N1,751.15). Meanwhile, the lowest prices were observed in Oyo (N1,250.71), Ogun (N1,258.08), and Lagos (N1,262.38).

The report also showed that the North-East Zone recorded the highest average diesel price at N1,676.11, while the South-West Zone had the lowest average price at N1,303.61 per litre.

The continued rise in fuel prices highlights the growing burden on households and businesses as they grapple with higher transportation and energy costs.