The Nation Newspaper

Category: e-Business

  • ‘2017 was year of growth for African start-ups’

    A member of the judging panel evaluating the Southern Africa edition of the Global Start-up Awards (GSA) in 2018, Barbara Mallinson, has said 2017 was a good year for Africa’s start-up ecosystem.

    “It feels like 2017 is when the start-up scene finally grew up in Africa. For years, innovative things have been built and taken to market, but very few of these innovations managed to scale and exit successfully. This year was different. We’ve seen funding and scaling and exits on a level that’s comparable to the States or Europe. Startups that stood out to me include Luno for how they got their timing right. The combination of the perceived risk of holding local currency and the global trend to get into crypto-currencies has resulted in huge growth and a significant Series B for the crypto-currency exchange and wallet. There is also Sweep South and I’m just a fan of their model and can see it working in many different areas,” Mallinson said.

    Mallinson believes despite the usual ongoing challenges faced by African start-ups, greater access to funding and other avenues of support will encourage home-grown entrepreneurs to compete.

    “There’ll still be the usual market access challenges that we’ve come to tolerate over the past few years but on top of this, there’ll also be greater competition from other start-ups. These days, it’s a whole lot easier to start a business, receive operational support and gain access to funding than it was before. And because of this, many more people are choosing to do so.

    “Nearly all of the continent’s most successful start-ups have come from cities such as Jo’burg, Cape Town, Cairo, Nairobi, Accra, Kigali, Kampala and Lagos. It’s not surprising, since each of these cities has an established and flourishing start-up eco-system that plays host to numerous incubators, accelerators, investors and industry events. The next step however, is to scale these opportunities beyond the big cities, where needs are often greater and innovative solutions could make a bigger difference,” Mallison added.

    The Southern Africa edition of the Global Start-up Awards has a total of 13 award categories including best start-up founder, best incubator and best fin-tech start-up of the year.

    Judges will make shortlists from all the online nominations received before a jury scores each of the finalists per category. A public vote will then be conducted and added to the jury’s score.

    Winners will be crowned for each participating country in the region before the regional awards take place in the third quarter of 2018 followed by the global award show.

    Online nominations will open on  March 5, 2018 via the competition’s official website.

    Mckevin Ayaba, Regional Director for GSA-Southern Africa said: “Start-ups from here don’t get to be on the limelight because we don’t always have the people who that they ca make it to the next level. We want to recognise them because technology is shaping the future of the world and we need to encourage start-ups to keep doing this important work.”

  • Cloud Printing Seamless on G Series, says Canon Director

    Cloud Printing Seamless on G Series, says Canon Director

    In this interview, the Regional Sales Director (Middle East) at Canon, Somesh Adukia, shared insights on the essence of digital technology and cloud innovation on Canon G.series printers.

    Why has Canon decided to introduce Pixma G Series printers to the Nigerian Market?

    The demand for cost effective office printers have significantly increased in Nigeria for offices where high yield printing is the norm. There has also been a boom in demand for home users who enjoy printing all their best photographs. With the Canon Pixma Series, our customers in Nigeria get to enjoy efficient cost effective printing.

    How do this new printers work?  

    The G1400 is a single function printer, while the PIXMA G2400 and PIXMA G3400 & G4400 are all-in-one printers offering print, scan and copy functionalities. We are in an age where internet connectivity drives our day to day personal and professional lives.  The G series range are Wi-Fi enabled and offer printing without wires from a PC, as well as smartphones or tablets, with full compatibility with Canon’s new PRINT app.

    This Cloud printing lets you send documents and photos to print from anywhere in the world, and remotely print from popular services including Instagram, Google Drive, Facebook, Dropbox and Flickr.

    For truly creative photo printing the G series range are also compatible with Canon’s Easy-PhotoPrint+ and are accessible from tablets or a web browser, the software accesses your photos and lets you edit them before printing creative projects such as greeting cards or calendars.

    Are there improved innovation on speed and capacity in the printers?

    The printers have been designed to cater to customers’ needs this is why each printer incorporates a durable FINE print head system for high quality prints at fast speeds, as well as technology that stops air penetrating the ink feeding tubes, ensuring reliability and stability when printing in high volumes.

    For prints with high levels of detail the 2pl, 4800x1200dpi print engine offers smooth gradations and fine detail, perfect for intricate documents or high-quality photographs. Each model in the range also prints borderless 4 x 6” photos in as little as 60[i] seconds.

    What makes Pixma G series different?

    The new printers all come with Canon’s My Image Garden software, which includes a range of applications including Creative Park. An exclusive software created by Canon that helps you print a variety personalised creations including cards, crafts and even high-detail paper arts, ranging from amateur to artisan professional crafters.

    Also the new compact refillable ink tank models combine an aesthetic design and ease of use. The four high-yields, front facing ink tanks are immediately visible, making it simple and fast to check ink levels, while the uniquely designed ink bottles make topping up a quick and mess-free task.

    Are the printers available in Nigeria?

    The printers are available at all Canon Authorized dealers including, prominent E-Commerce sites like Jumia, Konga and Yudala.

    What keeps Canon in the Nigerian market?

    Nigeria is one of the largest African markets in terms of potential and GDP, and we feel it is an untapped territory in terms of its potential and growth. It is also an important market due to largest population allowing it to be a key market for Canon.

    It is an important hub in Industrial & Production Printing segment, and has a thriving film industry – all of which Canon can support through our value added services. Our goal is to extend our services to the largest number of customers possible by being closer to them.

    What plans do you have for after sales services?

    Earlier this year Canon Central and North Africa partnered with three service centers in Nigeria namely Ensure Services, Kontakt and Technology Distribution (TD). These service stations offer total after-sales product repair services in eight locations across Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt. The service centers will also support all B2C products including DSC, DSLR, professional video, OPP inkjet- and laser-printers, projectors and calculators.

  • NCC: 2017 challenging for regulation

    NCC: 2017 challenging for regulation

    The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has said this year has been particularly challenging in the area of regulation.

    Its Director, Public Affairs, Tony Ojobo, who spoke on the sidelines of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR)  Presidential Dinner in Lagos at the weekend, lamented that the challenges posed a serious drawback to the achievement of the Federal Government’s 30 per cent broadband penetration target  next year.

    He said: “This year has been full of challenges. We declared 2017 as the Year of Telecoms Consumers. And the reason for that was to make sure that we put the issues that have to do with the consumers on the front burner, addressing them one after the other.

    “The 2442 Do Not Disturb (DND) code was introduced because people were still complaining about unsolicited messages but, of course, the platform has been provided.

    “We still receive a few complaints from people who said they have activated but still occasionally get these unsolicited messages.

    “That is why we have the second level of support that we have provided, which is the 622, that is NCC’s helpline where if, for instance, you have activated your DND (2442) and you are still receiving unsolicited messages, then you can report to the NCC on 622 and, of course, we will make sure that we handle it.”

    He said the year has been a mixture of the good and the bad, because the industry has also witnessed progress.

    “We still have challenges and some of these challenges are challenges that we have outlined in some of our stakeholders’ fora; that we have had the challenge of deployment of base stations in the states because of the issue of internally generated revenue (IGR) of the states by a lot of governors. A lot of approvals are delayed in terms of siting base transmission stations (BTS); we have also had BTS shut downs; we also have had issues with right of way (RoW) and the reluctance of various agencies at the various levels to give approval as quickly as possible for the deployment of infrastructure,” he said.

    According to him, the Executive Vice Chairman/CEO of NCC Prof Garba Dambatta had made a case for these challenges at the Governors Forum. He said the CEO made a presentation on how these challenges are contributing to poor service quality. “There is need for us to have a pervasive roll out of BTS so that  we can narrow those gaps, the black spots we have and areas we don’t have coverage so that the issue of access and even broadband penetration can target be realised. Unless we do that, we will keep having challenges to meet the Federal Government’s 30 per cent coverage by next year. But, of course, some these challenges in delays for approval of RoWs for BTS, are slowing us down. We believe that in 2018, some of these challenges, especially as the governors are beginning to apprecaite the importance of these infrastructure in their states, will fizzle out gradually,” Ojobo said.

  • There’re internal, external tension in tech sector, says Accenture

    Accenture has said there are pressing forces acting internally and externally on organisations and society in the technology circle.

    It said rapid technological advancements are altering the world today, provoking both wonder and angst about the possibilities-whether it’s artificial intelligence (AI), computer vision or blockchain, emerging technologies are uprooting the digital and physical experiences of everyday lives.

    These joint forces are simultaneously creating optimism and concern about the unprecedented wave of change that is unfolding, it noted in the Fjord Trends 2018, its 11th yearly report that examined seven emergent trends expected to impact business, technology and design in the year ahead.

    Co-founder/Chief Client Officer, Fjord,Mark Curtis, said: “Each of our 2018 trends is borne out of a fundamental tension — be it a shift, a collision or a parting of ways. Digital versus physical, human versus machine, centralised versus decentralised, speed versus craft, automation versus control, traceability versus anonymity. Winners in 2018 will be those who best navigate these tensions and seize the opportunity to collectively design the world we’ll be living in.”

    Fjord Trends 2018 suggests how organisations can navigate these currents and design for positive change. It examines seven trends expected to shape the next generation of experiences. These are Physical Fights Back: Digital has had the limelight long enough – there are two brand experience headliners now. The time has come to blend the digital with the physical; Computers have eyes: As well as comprehending our words, computers now understand images without any help from us, imagine the exciting possibilities for next-generation digital services; and Slaves to the Algorithm: How do you design a marketing strategy to win over the algorithms – immune to conventional branding efforts – that sit between brands and their customers?

     

    Others are a Machine’s Search for Meaning: A.I. might change our jobs, but need not eliminate them. We can – and should – design our collaboration with the machines that will help us develop; in Transparency We Trust: Blockchain has the potential to create transparency that will clear the fog of Internet ambiguity, regain lost trust, and repair relationships with the public; the Ethics Economy: Organisations are feeling the heat to take stands on political and societal hot button issues, whether they want to or not. And consumers are speaking with their dollars, choosing brands that align with their core beliefs; and Design Outside the Lines: Design’s rapid ascendency and newfound respect within organisations is a win for all. But, in a world in which everyone thinks they’re a designer, today’s practitioners need to evolve – how they work, learn and differentiate themselves – if they are to continue having impact.

    Design Director at Fjord in South Africa, Marcel Rossouw, said the annual Fjord Trend Report for 2018 provides an invaluable view on how technologies and experiences are shaping the way we live and do business.

    “In South Africa, Blockchain has the power to create transparency that will clear the fog of internet ambiguity, win back lost trust, and repair relationships with the customers. Considering the local economic and political climate, the technology could be a real game changer to regain control and promote transparency. Automation and the rise of AI are also forcing organisations in the African continent to design for a seismic shift in the workplace,” Rossouw said.

    Also commenting on the trends, Global co-Lead, Fjord and Managing Director, Accenture Interactiv, Baiju Shah said: “We believe this edition of Trends will provoke and inspire but, above all, provide actionable advice for organisations to prepare for the opportunities ahead.

     

    Many of the thorny questions ahead of us revolve around human-machine interactions, the consequences of which will be profound for individuals, society and organisations of all kinds. As digital fades from being stand-alone to being embedded in our physical world, our relationships with everything around us will be redefined.”

    Fjord Trends 2018 draws upon the collective thinking of Fjord’s 1,000+ designers and developers around the world. The annual report is based on first-hand observations, evidenced-based research and client work. This year, for the first time, it also drew upon the individual insights and perspectives from 85 clients across five continents, whose views inspired the report.

     

  • Ojobo is NIPR’s PR Personality of the Year

    The Public Affairs Director, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) Mr. Tony Ojobo, has emerged the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) PR Personality of the Year.

    The conferment of the prestigious award was performed by NIPR’s President/Chairman of Council, Dr. Rotimi Oladele, who described Ojobo as the midwife, nurse and committed PR practitioner.

    He said: “The prestigious award is given in recognition of your sterling leadership qualities, outstanding contributions towards the development of the public relations practice and support for industry advancement.”

    The ceremony climaxed the yearly Presidential Dinner held at Lagos Sheraton Hotel, Ikeja.

    Ojobo thanked NIPR for recognising the little contribution he had brought to the practice of PR through the NCC.

    He promised to do more to enhance a robust atmosphere for customers and the entire stakeholders in the telecoms ecosystem to derive optimum benefit for their investment.

    The NIPR chief said Ojobo has brought finesse and vitality to professionalism in his handling of issues in Nigeria’s fastest growing information communication technology (ICT) sector, commenting and communicating in everyday language in the public as matters arise.

     

     

  • Access Bank: innovation is antidote against irrelevance

    THE Executive Director, Personal Banking, Access Bank,  Mr Victor Etuokwu, has identified investment in innovation as the only antidote to sinking into irrelevance by organisations.

    He said this realisation led to the support the bank has given to the African Fintech Foundry (AFF), which he said would promote technology, not only in finance but in health, security, agriculture and other vital sectors of the economy.

    Etuokwu, who spoke at the AFF Conference in Lagos, said 12 pioneering firms in FinTech would jostle for space at the conference to give new lease of life to the entire business ecosystem.

    He said: “AFF is Access Bank’s accelerator, which seeks to create new opportunities in Nigeria and sub-Saharan Africa. The Foundry is designed to provide a platform to inspire and challenge African innovators, entrepreneurs and developers. The idea of the Foundry was conceived a year ago as the bank was thinking of better ways to remain relevant in the coming years.”

    Also, Head, AFF, Mr. Victor Okigbo said the collaboration between banks and financial technologies (FinTechs) will promote the democratisation of financial services and promote financial inclusion.

    Okigbo who, argued that the application, services and solutions created by FinTechs will  make the achievement of these goals possible.

    He said: “Loans that were hitherto inaccessible to everyone becomes accessible as a result of this great collaboration. Financial advisory services  only to the top one per cent will consequently be made available to a more larger audience.”

    On the importance of the conference, he said: “We are bringing together disparate groups that represent different financial services and emerging FinTech disruption and  we are helping them to connect, and also surrounding them with investors, mentors, coaches and opportunities.”

    Mr Okigbo said the conference serves as a meeting point for all the different groups to collaborate and create the future.

    Recalling how the idea came, Etuokwu said management realised that innovation was the only insurance the bank had against irrelevance.

    “AFF will provide African tech start-ups seeking to launch their product, with capacity building and training in business development and would also provide connectivity to global innovation grids, promote access to capital, create opportunities for partnerships and showcase best practices and successes in Africa-led innovation solutions”.

    He said the bank was looking for better ways to serve its customers and stakeholders and remain relevant in an ever-changing world. He said AFF and AFF Disrupt conference are part of the ways to grow and maintain the market share of the bank.

    “We knew right from the beginning that we needed to have people who are different and can be very creative outside a regular banking environment. That was why we created this Foundry.

    “It took us a long time looking for those who will run it, and we have the team that we think will take us to that effort,” he said.

    He concluded that the idea is to generate new products and enter new markets, an open environment for every person who is creative, including innovators and developers, as they will gather a team of investors so that innovations would sought for and harnessed effectively and efficiently.

  • Group to Buhari: declare emergency in ICT sector

    A group, Broadband 2018 Coalition, has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to  declare a state of emergency in the information communication technology (ICT) sector over Nigeria’s poor ranking on the ICT Development Index (IDI).

    Titled: “Measuring the Information Society Report (MISR)”, and published by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the report rated Nigeria 143rd on the global scene.

    It lamented that it is a significant downward shift from the 137th position it occupied last year. On the African index, Nigeria also placed 15th behind countries, such as Mauritius, South Africa, Kenya, Gabon, Ghana, Zimbabwe and Cote d’Ivoire.

    The ICT Development Index is a composite measure, which combines 11 indicators into one benchmark index to monitor and compare ICT developments among 176 countries. The three-dimension frameworks used to measure the IDI are Access (level of ICT readiness, which includes five infrastructure and access indicators: fixed-telephone subscriptions, mobile-cellular telephone subscriptions, international Internet bandwidth per Internet user, households with a computer, and households with Internet access); use (level of ICT intensity which includes three intensity and usage indicators: individuals using the Internet, fixed broadband subscriptions, and mobile-broadband subscriptions) and skills (capabilities or skills which are important for ICTs and include three proxy indicators: years of schooling, gross secondary enrolment and gross tertiary enrolment).

    Coalition convener and technology expert, Danjuma Yusuf, lamented that Nigeria’s technology landscape needed urgent intervention, given its sharp stagnation and decline in recent years. He urged the Federal and state governments, and other relevant regulatory agencies to quickly focus on strategies that would increase the country’s global competitiveness in ICT.

    According to Yusuf, Nigeria has become an object of ridicule on global ICT rankings after being beaten by countries with much lower Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

    He said with direct connections to five submarine cables that cost $7billion of Africa’s $20billion submarine cable investments, Nigeria has no excuse for not leading the African index ahead of South Africa (with four submarine cables), Zimbabwe and Gabon with two cables each, and urged the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency in Nigeria’s ICT sector.

    Yusuf cited Kenya as a country that also launched its Broadband policy in 2013, but is leading Africa in internet penetration with over 30 million people having (67 per cent) internet access, according to the Jumia Business Intelligence and GSMA ‘White Paper 2017: “Trends from the Kenyan Smartphone and eCommerce Industry”.

    He said the country was able to achieve the feat because of the proactive regulation and a government-funded National Optic Fibre Backbone Infrastructure (NOFBI) project, which rolled out hundreds of thousands kilometers of fiber optic cables across Kenya’s 47 counties.

    According to him, Kenya’s leadership initiatives have ensured that the country remains one of Africa’s leading recipients of foreign direct investment and the fastest advancing country in ICT on the continent.

    Mr. Yusuf urged speedy implementation of the five-year Broadband Plan stating broadband has played an outsized role in transforming societies and economic opportunities across the world, facilitating education and knowledge dissemination, enabling trade and commerce and contributing to growing entrepreneurship across the world.

     

  • ‘NOTAP working on patent’

    • GenesysIGNITE: startups share $30,000

    The Minister of Science and Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, has said the Federal Government, through the National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP), is addressing issues related to patent and intellectual property right. He said this would safeguard the investment and ideas of young people in the country.

    Onu,who spoke at the GenesysIGNITE start-ups convergence in Enugu organised by Genesys Tech Hub in collaboration with CFAtech.ng, said it was high time various research and development results were pulled off the shelves of the universities and turned to commercial products. “Any nation that produces science and technology experts is always the toast of the world. Genesys is doing what the government has in mind with regard to youth development – capacity building, incubation, providing venture capitals. I can tell you that the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology will support this platform to ensure that young people are given a space to express themselves and add value to the economy,” he said.

    He gave the cash prizes of $10,000 each to Tutor Finder, PlayJoor and House of Uwe.

    Also speaking at the event with over 2000 start-ups drawn from Enugu, Abia, Uyo, Imo, Anambra, Delta, Ebonyi and other neighbouring states in attendance,  former Senate President, Senator Ken Nnamani, said the future belongs to the digital economy and will become visible if the country strategises properly.

    Nnamani, who chaired the event, stressed the need for educational institutions, especially the universities to ‘feed’ the technology industry with skilled manpower and graduates fit for purpose. He lauded Genesys for the foresight in organising the event which he said, could igniting mind shift among the youths “from election ballot box snatching to technological evolution in the region”.

    “What Genesys is trying to ignite in the Southeast and Enugu State in particular is awesome, by opening the eyes of our young people to tech disruptions and opportunities. It is important, because our people are ingenious and if we can apply the ingenuity in the tech ecosystem we can compete with the Silicon Valley. It is high time we shifted our ingenuity from snatching ballot boxes during elections and channel the strengths towards technology.”

    Founder/CEO of Genesys Tech Hub, Kingsley Eze, said the main objective of the initiative was to discuss latest technology trends that impact the regions, and to proffer strategies for unearthing benefits in the various sectors of the economy. Through the event, he said, they are also promoting innovative business solutions and ideas, propagated in the form of start-ups, within the region, culminating in capacity building and other exigencies to help them thrive.

    Chukwuemeka Fred Agbata Jnr., founder, CFAtech.ng, who moderated the panel session, told the participants that this type of event had helped fuel tech revolution in other parts of the country. He said they owe themselves a duty to take advantage of the opportunities that will follow GenesysIGNITE 2017.

    On his part, Prof Umar Danbatta, executive vice chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), tied digital innovation and development to digital literacy, stating that government needs to move towards the “pull” strategy with emphasis in the development of appropriate legal framework, applications and local content.

    “Digital Access Programme (DAP) is being implemented by the regulator to equip secondary schools across the country with internet connectivity. More than 223 schools have benefited. Internet clouds are being provided within Nigeria’s university and polytechnics to foster improvement in digital literacy and application,” the EVC said through Mr. Tony Ojobo, director, Public Affairs at the Commission.

    GenesysIGNITE 2017 has laid a solid foundation for technology development in the south east and south south regions of the country.

     

  • SAP, AYECI renovate school with N7m

    A technology firm, Systems Application Products (SAP) Nigeria and AYECI Africa, a not-for profit (NGO) have collaborated to renovate Tolu Primary School, Ajegunle, one of the numerous schools in Tolu School Complex, Temidire Street, Ajegunle in Ajeromi/Ifelodun Local Goevrnment Area of Lagos State

    In 2015, over 300 pupils of the school were displaced after a storm blew off the roof of the entire block of classrooms housing the school. All the school’s infrastructure, including furniture, teaching and learning materials were destroyed forcing the pupils to take lessons in the open and under trees.  The outcome drastically affected the quality of teaching and learning as it exposed the pupils and their teachers to environmental hazards.

    Hope, however, came when founder and President of AYECI Africa, Mrs. Ifeoma Adibe-Chukwuka, visited the school and saw the ruins. She then intervened through a collaboration with SAP Nigeria, which led to the renovation a block of eight-classrooms with offices, toilets, library, 120 desks and sinking of a bole hole in the school.

    The gesture, which costs N7million, was in line with the group’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme started in October 2017 completed in less than three months.

    Every October, SAP embarks on its signature global CRS initiative tagged: “Month of Service”, through which it came to the rescue of Tolu Primary School and other schools.

    In a keynote address, the Marketing Manager SAP West Africa, Mrs. Juliet Omorodion, who came in company of the Office Manager, Mrs. Dumebi Okeleke, said the SAP Nigeria Month of Service intervention was facilitated by AYECI Africa.

    She said: “Out of the feelings we have for the pupils in this school, we intervened, we are poised to intervening in such hopeless situations in order to give hope to the hopeless pupils and for a brighter future.”

    Inaugurating the project, SUBEB Chairman, Dr. Ganiyu Oluremi Sopeyin, represented by the Director, Curricular Department, Mrs. Bunmi Oteju, commended SAP Nigeria and AYECI Africa for their  interventions in the state.  She said it is a worth-while venture.

    Mrs. Oteju promised to make available more desks to complement the 120 desks donated by SAP and AYECI Africa, advising the school management to properly take care of the infrastructure. She added that the Lagos State Governor  Akinwumi Ambode encourages and welcomes private and corporate partnership in infrastructural development in the state. She called on other corporate bodies and NGOs to emulate SAP Nigeria and AYECI Africa.

    “We are most grateful and we appreciate you for your milk of human kindness in this and other gestures in the state,” she said.

     

  • Inconsistent policy, others killing ICT sector

    Inconsistent policy, others killing ICT sector

    Inconsistent policy, lack of inclusive strategy, disconnect between government-industry and the academia are some of the challenges hampering the growth of the information communication technology (ICT) sector.

    An expert and former President, Institute of Software Practitioners of Nigeria (ISPON), Chris Uwaje, said that there are also public awareness gap, uninformed user community and stakeholders, limited ICT research and development, funding mechanism, inadequate incentive and sustainable strategy.

    He spoke on: The Fourth Industrial Revolution: Weaponisation of the Cyberspace and Imperatives for National Digital Defence at the Nigeria Mobile Economic Summit and Expo 2017 in Lagos. According to him, the sector is also bedeviled with under assessment of local content capabilities and over-tasked regulation and responsibilities.

    For the country to move forward, Uwaje who is also the Director-General, DSIHUB Africa and Chair, IEEE-IoT Summit, however said the country’s national ICT vision and mission should be focused on software engineering and innovation development to ensure national ICT competitiveness and future survival.

    “The nation is encouraged to engage the challenges of digital mind, digital regime change revolution, by invigorating digital local content strategies, plans and strategies for national adoption.

    “To accelerate the diffusion of mobile economy, the implementation of the National Broadband Plan should be intensified and internet service providers (ISPs) should be encouraged to engage constructive IPv6 transition and migration. They should be encouraged to engage constructive IPv6 transition and migration.

    “The Senate Committee on Information and Communications Technology should without further delay, promote the enactment of National ICT Framework Bill to harmonise all ICT Acts into one foundation under the institutional framework of “The Office of the ICT General of the Federation.”

    He said the establishment of national and state digital mobile taskforce workgroups as a “Train the Trainer” strategy is imperative, adding that a National ICT Innovation Development Fund should be created to fuel the acceleration of digital economy innovation hubs, and promote start-up Hackathon at all levels.