The Federal Government has taken practical steps to solve federal workers’ transportation challenges by initially deploying 100 electric mass transit buses.

It also delivered the first batch of electric vehicles (EVs) promised to workers, as part of a broader move to cut transportation costs amid promoting cleaner energy use across the country.

On Wednesday, the first batch of 37 buses was commissioned at the Eagle Square, Abuja, by the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Esther Walson-Jack, under the Federal Civil Service Electric Mass Transit Programme.

The initiative, approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) under the Renewed Hope Mass Transit Scheme, is meant to provide federal workers with safer, more affordable and reliable transportation along designated routes within the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

In another development, the Director-General, National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC), Oluwemimo Joseph Osanipin, who disclosed that the government had taken delivery of the first batch of EVs promised to civil servants, described it as the beginning of a wider rollout under the administration’s clean energy transportation drive.

He spoke while briefing journalists after meeting President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the State House.

Speaking at the bus inauguration, Walson-Jack, described the intervention as central to workers’ welfare and productivity.

“For many civil servants, the daily commute shapes their finances, their safety, their punctuality and ultimately their productivity,” she said.

The retiring HoCSF said the launching was a fitting close to her tenure. In her words:

“This commissioning is providentially my parting gift to my dearly beloved federal servants. In a little under 24 hours, my time as Head of the Civil Service of the Federation comes to an end.”

Walson-Jack said the buses were acquired through the Renewed Hope Infrastructure Development Fund and linked the programme to other government interventions, including the minimum wage review, the wage award following the fuel subsidy removal, digitalisation of the public service, and reforms in pensions, promotions and health insurance. “Each is a thread in the same commitment that reform must be felt, not merely announced,” she said.

The Minister of State for Industry, Senator John Owan Enoh, said the buses programme was an investment in workers’ welfare and local industrial development. He said each bus could carry up to 200 passengers and travel a minimum of 200 kilometres on a full charge, and that the scheme would ease pressure on workers’ household incomes while supporting Nigeria’s automotive sector.

The buses, approved by NADDC, are expected to run on designated routes linking residential corridors with the Federal Secretariat and other government offices in the FCT, with the first deployment serving as a testing phase ahead of a wider rollout.

On the electric vehicle scheme, Osanipin said the government had also deployed EV-related infrastructure in about 16 universities to build the ecosystem needed to support the transition to alternative energy vehicles. He said policies promoting EVs and Compressed Natural Gas required complementary investment in filling stations, mobile refilling units and gas production before their benefits could be fully felt.

He disclosed that the number of companies licensed to retail gas had risen to about 81, from the previous four.

The Federal Road Safety Corps has updated its policies to streamline driver’s licence applications, shifting major parts of the process online to reduce physical waiting times at registration offices.

Motorists, who nust be 18 years and above, can now begin the application process online and complete most of the steps using a smartphone.

How to apply for a driver’s licence online
Applicants can follow these steps:

1. Visit the official driver’s licence portal

Go to nigeriadriverslicence.org. If the website does not display properly on a mobile device, switch to “Desktop Site” mode in the browser settings.

2. Start a new application

Select DL Application, then choose New Driver’s License from the available options.

3. Enter your details

Provide your driving school certificate number and complete the required personal information.

Applicants should ensure that their name and other details correspond exactly with the information on their National Identification Number (NIN).

4. Choose a licence centre

Select your preferred FRSC Driver’s Licence Centre where your biometric information will be captured.

You will then need to book an appointment for the biometric process.

5. Make payment online

Payment is made through the Remita gateway on the official portal.

Available payment options include card, bank transfer and USSD.

Applicants should avoid making payments to individuals or agents outside the official payment platform.

6. Attend your biometric appointment

After completing payment, print your payment receipt and attend the appointment on the scheduled date.

Applicants should take their original documents with them for verification and biometric capture.

What you need before applying
Applicants must first attend an FRSC-accredited driving school and obtain a driving school certificate.

The certificate is required to proceed with the driver’s licence application.

Applicants will also need their NIN, a valid means of identification and a passport photograph.

Temporary licence while you wait
After completing the required stages, applicants can receive a temporary driver’s licence valid for 60 days while the permanent licence is being processed.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Thursday swore in Mr. Abel Olumuyiwa Enitan as the new Head of Civil Service of the Federation, HoCSF, marking the commencement of his tenure as the nation’s Chief Administrative Officer.

The brief ceremony took place at the State House, Abuja.

Enitan succeeds Mrs. Didi Esther Walson-Jack, who retired after attaining the mandatory retirement age of 60. The former HoCSF attended the ceremony alongside her husband, Hon. Nimi Walson-Jack. Also present were the wife of the new HoCSF, Mrs. Olawunmi Ololade Enitan, and the Permanent Secretary, State House, Mr. Peter Fashedemi.

President Tinubu had announced Enitan’s appointment on August 19, 2026. He was the most senior Permanent Secretary at the time of his nomination.

Congratulating the new HoCSF, President Tinubu urged him to uphold the highest standards of professionalism, integrity, accountability and efficiency in the Nigerian Civil Service.

Mr. Enitan, born December 12, 1966, hails from Osun State. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Banking and Finance from the University of Lagos and a Master’s Degree in Public Policy Analysis from Nasarawa State University, Keffi.

He joined the Federal Civil Service in 1998 as a Senior Operations Officer at the then Family Economic Advancement Programme, FEAP.

He later served at the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs and in the Office of the Vice President at the State House, where he rose from Chief Administrative Officer to Director between 2010 and 2018.

Appointed Permanent Secretary in December 2018, he served at the Federal Civil Service Commission and subsequently in the Ministries of Environment, Police Affairs, Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, and Education before his elevation to Head of Service.