The Nation Newspaper

Category: e-Business

  • Robbers burgle NIMC’s store

    Four persons have been arrested by Police for the theft of old National Identity Card in Calabar, the Cross River State capital. The Nigerian Identity Card Management Commission (NIMC) store  in Calabar,  was  burgled with some items, including 4,555 old national identity cards carted away.

    The cards were recovered, and the four suspects, who were found in possession of them, were arrested at Eyo-Edem Street, Calabar. The suspects have also been charged to court by the police for the theft.

    The store, which has some materials and items inherited by rhe NIMC from the defunct Department of National Civic Registration (DNCR), was broken into while the remaining old national ID cards distributed years ago were stolen. The DNCR and all its assets and liabilities were taken over by NIMC in 2007.

    The Commission’s spokesperson, Mr. Loveday Chika Ogbonna, assured the public that the recovered cards were not part of the new national e-ID Card being issued by the NIMC.

    The new e-ID Card, which was launched in late 2014, is of higher technology, making it extremely difficult to be faked or used by whoever is not the registered owner.

  • Lagos: Attaining the smart city status

    Lagos: Attaining the smart city status

    The deployment of Information Communications Technology (ICT) tools to tackle urban health, water, transportation, schools and other issues is the hallmark of a smart city which Lagos State is aspiring to be. LUCAS AJANAKU reports that applications, such as Uberpool, could aid commuters in the city.

    The free online encyclopedia, Wikipedia, has defined ‘a smart city as an urban development vision to integrate ICT and Internet of Things (IoT) technology in a secure fashion to manage a city’s assets.

    These assets include local departments’ information systems, schools, libraries, transportation systems, hospitals, power plants, water supply networks, waste management, law enforcement, and other community services.

    A smart city is promoted to use urban informatics and technology to improve the efficiency of services. ICT allows city officials to interact directly with the community and the city infrastructure and to monitor what is happening in the city, how the city is evolving, and how to enable a better quality of life. Through the use of sensors integrated with real-time monitoring systems, data are collected from citizens and devices – then processed and analysed. The information and knowledge gathered are keys to tackling inefficiency.

    Wikipedia says other terms that have been used for similar concepts include cyberville, digital city, electronic communities, flexicity, information city, intelligent city, knowledge-based city, MESH city, telecity, teletopia, Ubiquitous city, wired city.

    Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode has said the power of technology and collaboration in building the transport systems of the future informed his plans to remove the notorious yellow buses called Danfo from Lagos roads. This decision showed intention to reduce congestion and pollution, as well as pave way for an efficient mass transportation system that would make it easier to move around a technologically savvy, smart city.

    According to experts, this is important because the country is at the forefront of urbanisation, with over 200 million people expected to live and work in its cities in the next 40 years, more than tripling the size of its current urban population. Only China and India surpass this rapid rate of urbanisation, which presents a serious challenge for the country’s transport system.

    The African Development Bank (AfDB) said the average commuter in Lagos spends over three hours in traffic daily. While a new system would require significant time and investment to implement, a technology firm, Uber says it has the capacity to provide.

    Its General Manager, sub-Saharan Africa, Mr Alon Lits, said  the firm has applied the philosophy of ride-sharing in cities across the world, effectively reducing congestion and environmental impact in the process. “We have experienced the benefits that technology can bring to public transport; with global positioning system (GPS) systems and constant communication, technology can make it safer for both the driver and the passenger. Every aspect of every trip becomes transparent – this provides the data to make transport more efficient and enables drivers to grow their own businesses; passengers can rely on getting to their destination on time and paying a set and transparent fee.”

    At the 14th Annual Lecture of the Centre for Values in Leadership, Ambode said collection of fees was a key challenge in the Danfo system, but Lits says the government and businesses can effect change in the short term, while consumers may determine the long-term change when the right technology makes its way into the city.

    If statistics from Ministry of Transportation are anything to go by, as of 2015, there were about one million registered vehicles on Lagos roads, accounting for the congestion usually experienced by motorists.

    What this means is that the time to request public transport that works and is affordable and change personal habits to assist in reducing congestion, is now. Many Nigerians commute to and from the office each day, which has made a private car a necessity. Sharing transport to and from the business hubs in a smart city could change the situation.

    Although Uber has not yet rolled out its Uberpool solution in Lagos, Lits said it could become an attractive solution for Lagos commuters, as it is in over 29 other cities across the globe, including emerging economies, such as Jakarta and Mumbai.

    He said routes, such as Ikeja to Ikoyi, Ikoyi to Ajah and Victoria Island to Ajah are popular, and could benefit from a ridesharing solution, such as Uberpool, for efficiency. “Uberpool is simple; riders going in the same direction are matched with one another to share a ride, giving them the convenience and quality of Uber at a reduced price that fits the everyday commuter. Unlike buses, an uberpool vehicle gets the rider all the way to their destination. Because sharing isn’t the issue: its price and convenience that matter most to people,” he added.

    The Lagos Ministry of Economic Planning & Budget regretted that, with the average Lagos commuter spending over three hours on increasingly congested roads, the city has experienced losses in terms of economic efficiency and other negative social effects such as road accidents.

    But Lits have a different opinion, “cars are not the problem, it is how we use them that is problematic. Many vehicles on the road only have one passenger; through technology we can change every ride into a shared ride.

    “The Uberpool solution has already successfully reduced congestion in San Francisco, Paris and London. In San Francisco people are choosing Uberpool up to 50 percent of the time. In cities that have Uberpool, over 20 per cent of passengers are choosing to share their ride. And the impact on cities is clear; in the first half of last year, Uberpool has reduced the number of miles driven by 312 million-that’s more than the distance between Earth and Mars.

    “When getting a ride is as easy as walking into your garage and putting your keys in the ignition, there is no longer a need to own a private car at all. Combined with changed consumer habits, this could have a remarkable impact on reducing traffic congestion in Lagos,” he said.

    He is optimistic that the firm will succeed in redefining the Lagos public transport, considering that in the three years since Uber launched in Lagos, it has facilitated over one million trips and partnered over 3000 driver-partners.

    The company, which partners with Price Water Coopers (PwC) to ensure that each of its driver-partners knows his tax requirements also allows partners the unhindered access to the records of their net income made through the application.

    He said: “Through smart-technology, we have introduced the ability to easily calculate and collect fares through the app. This and other applications of advanced technology to the Lagos transport system, perfectly positions us to roll out transport solutions on a larger scale.

    “Real change will take time. It will require investment and the adaptation of existing transport structures. However, if business and government work together, we can create world-class, affordable systems that create jobs, improve efficiencies and reduce emissions. Our time operating in Lagos has reinforced to us that this is a high-growth smart city, with an important role to play in the African economy. Lagos is a mega-city, an innovation leader and a powerful driver for Africa’s largest economy. It is only fitting that the city has a smooth-running, world-class public transport system to match.”

  • $1.2b loans: Etisalat, banks end talks this week

    Etisalat Nigeria has said it is expecting the closure of discussion about the resolution of issues around its $1.2billion indebtedness to a consortium of local lenders this week.

    Its Vice President, Regulatory & Corporate Affairs, Ibrahim Dikko, said the telco was aware of news reports that Mubadala Development Company, the majority shareholder of the company, is exiting the business.

    He said while it was premature at this stage of the discussions to affirm that this is the conclusive option, Etisalat Nigeria considers it pertinent to state that parties to the negotiation are considering a number of options and discussions are at an advanced stage regarding the syndicated loan agreement with the banks.

    Dikko said: “It will therefore be presumptive and in bad faith to begin to predict the outcome. Discussions have so far been quite collaborative and we expect to reach a final resolution next week, by which time we will be in the position to make a definitive announcement.

    “Etisalat Nigeria can confirm that negotiations with the consortium of banks regarding the syndicated loan agreement signed in 2013 have reached an advanced stage. As noted in an earlier statement, we are considering a number of options and are not taking anything off the table at this time.

    “Etisalat remains a viable business, having recorded its best financial year in 2016. Parties are keen to ensure that the ongoing discussions and eventual outcome do not affect the day to day operations of the business whether now or after the announcement of our agreement. All parties have continually demonstrated an interest in the continued operations of Etisalat as a business as it remains the backbone of millions of small business owners; multinationals, government and, indeed, Nigerian subscribers in general.

    “Etisalat therefore appeals to its partners in the media to exercise some restraint in speculating the outcome of the ongoing discussions being held behind closed doors. We appreciate the tremendous support we have received since inception and count on the continued support owf our media partners as we navigate this path and emerge as a stronger business.”

  • ATCON: failure to migrate to IPv6 threatens ICT development

    The Association of Telecoms Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) has warned that the failure of networks to migrate to Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) is threatening the development of the Information Communications Technology (ICT) sector.

    Wikipedia defines IPv6 as the most recent version of Internet Protocol (IP), the communications protocol that provides an identification and location system for computers on networks and routes traffic across the internet.

    Its President, Olusola Teniola, who spoke at the opening ceremony of the international capacity building and engagement workshop on IPv6 hosted by the group in Lagos at the weekend, lamented that the migration of telcos to the new platform was overdue.

    He said: “The need to migrate to IPv6 is long overdue and ATCON is not particularly happy that majority of our networks in Nigeria are not IPv6 compatible, and this poses a threat to Nigerian ICT development.

    “The Nigerian ICT sector can no longer afford to take the back seat in the global ICT development; to leapfrog the adoption of IPv6, ATCON has taken a further step to involve the two key major stakeholders – the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) and the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and we are happy that these two important government establishment have bought into the future we are trying to create around the Nigerian ICT space.

    “ATCON National Executive Council intends to enlarge the scope of this workshop to Nigerian IPv6 Conference by next year’s edition. The direct implication of this proposed move by ATCON is to widen the market and accelerate the adoption and implementation of IPv6 for the good of the industry.

    “The dividend pervasive broadband may be farfetched if as an industry or a country we are not working towards broadband meeting with technology. As we all know that when Internet of Things (IoTs) take its place in our country an individual may need more than 10 IP addresses to enjoy the benefits that comes with IoTs.”

    According to Teniola, the other reasons ATCON has invested and is still investing heavily in the adoption of IPv6 are to increase the productivity and contribution level of the network engineers in the implementation and deployment of IPv6 for ICT/telecoms development; the need to enhance the performance of network engineers on network management with the ultimate goal of ensuring sustainable growth of the telecom industry; and  to provide network engineers with the required knowledge to compete favourably with their counterparts in the global market.

    “Provision of quality training for those engineers that manage our networks which would help in tackling the problem of quality of service in the telecommunication industry; provide impetus for Nigerian Network operators to migrate fromIPv4 to IPv6 with its attendant advantages are other reasons for ATCON’s investment in IPv6,” he added.

    He urged all ATCON members to migrate to IPv6 so that their training could be put to use in their various organisations.

  • NCC dissatisfied with IHS Connect over broadband infrastructure

    •60 jostle for InfraCo licences

    The Executive Vice Chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof Garba Dambatta, has expressed dissatisfaction with IHS Connect over its handling of the provision of broadband infrastructure in the Northcentral Zone.

    He said 60 firms had submitted bids for licences to provide infrastructure in the remaining five geopolitical zones.

    While the firm, a subsidiary of IHS Tower, won an InfraCo licence almost three years ago to provide infrastructure in the Northcentral, MainOne won InfraCo licenece for Lagos.

    Under the National Broadband Plan (NBP) of the Federal Government, it is expected that 30 per cent broadband penetration will be achieved next year from the less than 10 per cent it stands. One of the programnes designed to accelerate the realisation of the dream is the licensing of InfaCos to provide infrastructure in the six geopolitical zones of the country with one in Lagos.

    He said: “InfraCo licences have been offered to two legal entities: MainOne for the Lagos Zone and IHS Connect, a subsidiary of IHS for the Northcentral Zone. We have been monitoring the progress so far made. For Lagos, we are quite happy about the milestones so far achieved in the deployment of fibre network; but for the Northcentral Zone, we are not happy and action is being taken to ensure that remedial measure is put in place to speed up the process of deployment in Northcentral Zone. We will come out with a statement on this very soon.”

    Speaking about preparations for licensing the remaining zones, he said: “We are about to conclude that process. About 60 companies submitted bids for the licensing of the remaining zones with InfraCo licences. This is a massive number and as I am talking to you, we are about to conclude the selection process and very soon, by July we will come out with information about the successful bidders and those will be offered InfraCo licences subject to the conditions stated in the regulatory framework with the open access model that is driving the deployment of broadband infrastructure in the country,” Prof Dambatta said on the sideline of the TELL maiden awards in Lagos.

    He lamented that quality of service (QoS) is a challenge and has  been a challenge. “There are factors that culminate to degrade the quality of service. “Like I have explained, there are technical factors which the NCC can do something about and there are non-technical factors, which the Commission has to engage government at the three levels-federal, state and local government levels.

    “The situation at the moment is that we have noticed some level of improvement in quality of service but it is still far below the stipulate standard for key performance indicators (KPIs) we have deliberately put in place in order to ensure that QoS improves. So, we are trying to ensure that despite the improvement we have seen recently, we are still putting in place, measures to ensure that more and more is done for telcos to meet the stipulated standards of the KPIs,” he added.

  • Long road to NCC’s consumer-centric renaissance

    Long road to NCC’s consumer-centric renaissance

    The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) gathered all the stakeholders in the telecoms industry for the second leg of the launch of its 2017 Year of the Nigerian Telecoms Consumers campaign in Lagos. While the mobile network operators (MNOs), Lagos State and consumer rights advocacy groups endorsed the initiative, stakeholders say legacy industry challenges need to be addressed, reports LUCAS AJANAKU

    Lagos-based barber, John Eze, is not happy with his service provider. His grouse is that he gets unsolicited text messages and calls marketing one service or the other on the network. Frustrated, he complained to a friend who told him he could stop the menace by confining such numbers to ‘blacklist’ in which case, he alone would be able to make calls to the numbers, not the numbers making calls to him.

    He acceded to that suggestion and for some time, he appeared to get a temporary elixir. But one day, he opened the ‘blacklist’ and discovered almost 310 numbers consisting the 11-digit regular telephone numbers and short codes.

    He was so angry and said to himself: “So this is how many times I have been distracted from my work. Sometimes, the calls come so late at night that they wake me up from sleep. At other times, they come when I am expecting important calls from my customers and family members. Sometimes, when I see missed calls, I try to return the calls because my kids often use their friend’s numbers to ‘flash’ me from school so I could call them back. I get disappointed when I discover that the calls actually came from mobile network operator.”

    Eze’s experience is but one of such end users of telecoms services pass through in the country be it in voice call or mobile data services.

    Inundated with a barrage of complaints, the NCC declared year 2017 as the Year of Nigerian Telecoms Consumers. Fresh interventions and regulatory insights on telecoms consumers’ right and protection were rolled out during the second leg of the flag off the campaign in Lagos.

    More often MNOs, Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and content providers (value added services or VAS providers) inundate subscribers with telemarketing and unwanted messages which subscribers did not bargain for.

    Over time there was no choice or options to opt out, stop or control the kind of messages that they want to be receiving on their phone from MNOs. Attempt to solve this and other complaints with the  operators has been a tug of war for the over 154 million subscribers in the industry.

     

    How it started

     

    About 20 months ago when Prof Umar Danbatta assumed the leadership of the NCC as the Executive Vice Chairman, one of the very first steps he took was to constitute a committee on quality of service (QoS) to improve consumers experience on the network.

    He believes the consumers made all the success stories telecoms sector has recorded in the nation’s economy since its liberalisation in 2001.

    Last year, he launched an 8-point agenda which will drive the Commission’s activities until 2020. Item no six on the agenda reads: Protect and Empower Consumers’.

    He mandated the Consumers Affairs Bureau (CAB) of the Commission to ensure the protection of the rights, privileges and interests of telecoms consumers, including the physically challenged groups, through adequate information dissemination programmes, effective policies and strategies that promote effective and efficient service delivery.

    This, however, gave birth to the national campaign of the Year of the Nigerian Telecom Consumer which the commission flagged off in Abuja on March 15 and subsequently in Lagos on Wednesday May 17.

    The Speaker, Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, Chief officers and top managements from MNOs, ISPs, VAS and large telecoms consumers in the state were at the Blue Roof of the Lagos Television, Agidingbi to endorse the industry regulator’s year of consumer campaign.

     

    Why Lagos campaign?

     

    Quoting figures from the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in the first quarter of 2016, Prof Dmabatta said Lagos voice subscriber base stood at 19.04million representing 12.8 per cent of the country’s subscribers and 12.62million internet subscription or 13.65 per cent.

    He said: “The state is a home to many of the key players in the telecoms sector; so it is understandable that it has been selected as the flag off city after the major event in Abuja. The NCC 2017 Year of the Nigerian Telecom Consumer is remarkable because the consumer is in the center stage. We must also remember that these consumers together have made all the success stories we speak about possible in the telecom industry today.

    “So, telecom consumer campaign focuses on the 2442 Do-Not-Disturb (DND) Service Code, the 622 toll free complaints line, Quality of Service, QoS and concerns about the electromagnetic field (EMF) radiation.

    “The rates at which consumers receive telemarketing and unwanted messages from MNOs and ISPs would reduce drastically as consumers can now activate DND short code using the 2442 toll and forwarding unresolved complaints to NCC using 622 toll-free lines.”

    From a customer base of slightly over 400, 000 in the height of NITEL’s glory, “we now have a combined subscriber base of over 150 million across the country. This boom and massive jump in mobile telephony have brought with it several challenges especially in terms of reliable service, network upgrade, expansion and maintenance, and increasing demand for capital expenditure injection into the telecom industry.

    “In the midst of these, the average consumer runs the risk of just becoming a number. This danger therefore means that the customer suffers often times in silence in the hands of the operators primarily in the areas of dropped calls, failed calls often called Call Set Up Success Rate (CSSR) among others; this is exactly why this year is dedicated to the consumer.

     

    Response to DND code

     

    Prof Dambatta said two months after the national campaign was flagged off, there has been progress report in the activation of the ‘DND’ short code using 2442. He said more than one million consumers activated the 2442 DND code within two months, while more subscribers reported their unresolved complaints using NCC’s 622 toll-free lines in the same period.

    The NCC is charged with ensuring that the average consumer gets the best satisfaction possible from the use of the line he has acquired. Thus, mindful of the pains and challenges of a growing economy and a rapidly developing industry, NCC intends to strike a balance. A balance albeit in favour of the consumer who most times is at the receiving end.”

    Also speaking, NCC’s Executive Commissioner, Stakeholders Management, Mr. Sunday Dare, said the initiative was leveraging on the two key components of improving QoS; informing and empowering consumers.

    He said the NCC has already deployed several activities in its strategic plan to run a successful year of the consumer campaign with the support of the operators.

    “Our goal is to make the consumer experience of the average Nigerian better. The drivers of the NCC 2017 Year of the Nigerian Telecom Consumer are the 2442 DND Service Code, the 622 toll free complaints line, Quality of Service, QoS and concerns about the electromagnetic field (EMF) radiation. These are the areas the information provided in the course of the campaign would focus on,” he said.

     

    MNOs, ISPs react

     

    Mobile network representatives present at the flag-off campaign in Lagos took turn to share their positions on the consumer initiative. They applauded the initiative and said it could not have come at a more auspicious time. The NCC had met with the MNOs on different occasions in Abuja on the subject matter.

    They, however, assured consumers at the Lagos forum that the Do-Not-Disturb code is active on their networks and they have expanded their customers’ services networks in order to give adequate attentions to consumers’ complaints and challenges in the shortest possible time and best service delivery without any need to complain to the regulator.

    MTN, GLO, Etisalat, Airtel, Smile, Ntel, Spectranet, among others, sent representatives while advocacy associations including National Association of Telecoms Consumers (NATCOM) Association of Licensed Telecoms Companies of Nigeria (ALTON), Association of Telecoms Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) among others, were also in attendance.

     

    Why Lagos supports NCC

     

    The Lagos State House of Assembly commended the NCC for tagging 2017- Year of the Nigerian Telecom Consumers which emphasises the protection and education of telecom consumers.

    Its Speaker, Mr. Mudashiru Obasa, who spoke on the occasion, said NCC’s regulatory expertise has paid off in the industry that boasts of about 155million subscribers with about 20million of them domiciled in Lagos.

    Represented by a member the House, Mr. Tunde Braimoh, the speaker said the state would support initiatives that will lead to consumers’ education and improved service delivery among operators. He said the House will not shy away from issues related to telecoms activities and the stakeholders, because of the relevance to the affairs of the populace.

    He said: “NCC has done very well with regards to issues on consumer protection and the regulatory initiatives that lead to improved quality service delivery to the people. As the representatives of the people, Lagos State House of Assembly will not shy away from telecoms activities, because they touch the affairs of our people.

    “However, we are being inundated with petitions regarding issues in the industry which informed our desire for easier channels to communicate with the regulator in finding lasting solutions to these challenges. Having said that, it is commendable that NCC’s regulations have paid off; for without such, there wouldn’t have been improvement on quality of service. We believe that the theme for this campaign will further endear NCC as consumer friendly regulator”.

    The speaker also urged the NCC to mandate mobile network operators to also launch consumer products beneficial even to the downtrodden.

     

    Hurdles

     

    ATCON:

    The President, ATCON, Olusola Teniola, praised the NCC for trying to address issues raised by at least 153 consumers, including its officials and staffers of the telcos. He said the regulator is trying to raise awareness about which code to use when they have challenges and which department to contact should their challenges remain unattended to. “This is commendable because it never used to be like this,” Teniola who is former CEO of IS Internet Solutions and now Client Partner, Detecon International, a subsidiary of Deutsch Telekom Group, Germany.

    He, however, said the legacy challenges that have threatened the industry must be addressed for a win-win situation for all the stakeholders in the telecoms industry project. He said while there are technical challenges facing the sector, there are others that non-technical such as the foreign (forex) palaver. He said for the telcos to meet the International Telecoms Union (ITU’s) benchmark of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), which the NCC is deploying, the challenges must be addressed.

    He said Prof Dambatta has admitted that for there to be seamless service delivery in the country, no fewer than between 70,000 and 80,000 base transmission stations (BTS) will be needed. According to him, to meet the current huge deficit, more towers would have to be built with forex to meet the 30 per cent broadband penetration of next year according to the National Broadband Plan (NBP). The  less than 30,000 BTS in the country are congested to take existing traffic, adding that there is need to resolve the logjam on the right of way (RoW) to build more towers and optic fibre cables to address the huge demand.

    He said there is need for the NCC to collaborate with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on easing forex access by telcos, collaborate with security agencies on tekecoms equipment vandalism, collaborate with state governors on RoW and multiple taxation else the situation will be akin to beating up a child without giving him the room for improvement. “You will end up killing the child,” he said.

     

    NATCOMS

     

    NATCOMS President, Deolu Ogunbanjo also commended the NCC for the initiative. Like Teniola, he said the NCC should make the CBN see sense in giving telecoms equipment a new window to access forex. He said though the bank is encouraging SMEs to access forex, same gesture should be extended to the telecoms sector because of its enabling role to other sectors of the economy.

  • Minister: skilled ICT manpower gap widening

    The Minister of Communications, Mr Adebayo Shittu, has lamented the widening gap in skilled manpower in the information communication technology (ICT) sector in the country. He said expatriates have virtually taken over the tech space in the country.

    Shittu, who spoke at the inauguration of an Implementation Committee on the proposed ICT University of Nigeria, in Abuja,  said it has become imperative to have the university to leapfrog the country into a digital economy.

    The Committee has six weeks to submit its report so that the university can begin academic activities in the next session.

    Headed by the former Executive Secretary of the National University Commission (NUC), Prof Julius Okojie, the minister said the six campuses of the Digital Bridge Institute (DBI) located in the six geo-political zones of the country would serve as the university campuses.

    He said the Federal Government has already secured the endorsement of Facebook, Glo, Huawie, Cisco, MTN, Motorola, Ericsson, Siemens, Apple and Samsung among others to turn the campuses to specialised institutes for the ICT University.

    He said the establishment of the university has become imperative considering the urgent needs to bridge the gap in the ICT-related sectors of the economy, regretting that expatriates are having a field day in Nigeria in the absence of indigenous professionals and skilled-graduates.

    “The DiBI, when transformed into the ICT University, will provide fit-for-purpose curricular to cater for university graduates with specialisation in various ICT fields and expertise.  This will create employment opportunities for Nigerians both locally, within the West-African sub-region and even at the international level, aside from several opportunities that would be created for self-employment,” the minister said.

    He said the university would not only be driven and largely funded by the private sector, but the curriculum would be tailored towards meeting Nigeria industrial growth and development with ICT as its main focus, adding that Research and Development are key areas to fast track socio-economic progress of the country.

    He said: “ICT capacity building including research and development are championed by the private sector; thus creating opportunities for continuous linkage between the outcome of researches and the industry.

    “In this regard, the proposed ICT University of Nigeria should be driven by the ICT industry itself. The university would offer varieties of programmes aimed at providing specialist knowledge and expertise required for a professional career in the broad field of ICT such as telecoms, Internet of Things (IoT), cyber security, robotic embedded systems, computer forensics, digital media and entertainment technology.

    “The university would also be expected to offer skills development programmes in emerging and transformational technologies such as Cloud Computing and Big Data. It is expected that each of the six campuses of the present DBI would be transformed into a centre of technological excellence in specific areas of ICT.

    “Teaching experience in the new university should include a blend of theory, analysis, innovation and hands-on activities, such as project based learning and live industry-led projects.”

    The minister listed areas where he expected the Committee to deliver on its assignments within six weeks to include developing a  very robust curriculum of the proposed ICT University of Nigeria; DBI’s facilities utilisation including upgrade and expansion where necessary; proposed faculty members for the university including resource persons.

     

  • Internet crucial to future classroom, says Vodacom

    The advent of the internet will mark the end of classrooms where a teacher sits at the front and students sit facing him, technology firm, Vodacom Business Nigeria has said.

    It said in the future, classrooms will no longer be described as rooms within a school, where students are taught, but rather any space where learning takes place.

    According to Vodacom, today, assignments are completed online and uploaded through classroom portals; posting of grades and results are also done online. However, in the near future, group projects will be completed through collaborative software and students will use cloud storage instead of flash drives or paper to store their work, it added.

    Teachers, parents, students and administrators will communicate through social media platforms designed specifically for education or for a school. All this will be made possible through the power of the Internet.

    Speaking in Lagos during the Total School Support Exhibition (TOSSE), its Senior Manager, Product Portfolio, Funke Atanda, said the fear about abuse of the internet by learners was real, adding that the firm has already packaged a programme designed for schools with unwanted websites filtered.

    “Teachers need to embrace the internet and they need to be computer literate because laptops and other educational technology will eliminate the use of paper. As the Internet and computers become more accessible and cheaper; instead of teachers copying handouts and exams to give to students, they will be pushed online to students,” she said.

    She added that the role of the teacher will change from instructor to guide, maintaining that the responsibility now lies with teachers to become tech savvy and ready for not only the future classrooms but future learners.

    According to Atanda, not only will the instruction methods change in classrooms of the future but the classroom layout will too. Students will sit side by-side and not behind or in-front of each other; a more appropriate design for students to collaborate and not compete with one another. Classwork and assignments will also be based on shared efforts and not individual efforts, resulting in an environment where students will innovate, criticise, challenge the status quo, code and invent new technologies that improve learning and living.

    Vodacom Business Nigeria has been at the forefront of creating reliable and affordable connectivity solution for corporates and schools. Vodacom has now gone a step further to create EduLink Wireless Internet Services that gives schools across Nigeria access to fast, reliable and cost-effective Internet. This solution offers access to curriculum content from primary school to local and international qualifications preparations such as SSCE, UMTE and A-Levels. Educators are now well placed to reach more students and improve learning ability using content and curriculum available online even where books are scarce.

  • Cheers, jeers for Buhari

    Cheers, jeers for Buhari

    How has the maritime sector fared under the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration in the past two years? In this report, Maritime Correspondent OLUWAKEMI DAUDA looks at the mid-term performance of the administration, benchmarking it on stakeholders’ expectations.

    Before President Buhari mounted the saddle on May 29, 2015, former Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) president, Dr Olisa Agakoba (SAN) drew Federal Government’s  attention to the potential in the maritime industry.

    At a forum,   he maintained that maritime could generate about N7 trillion yearly, if the government  musters the will to take the right steps that would change the way things were done in the industry.

    He cited Philippines, Norway, Singapore, Malaysia, Denmark, and Belgium, which are deriving huge benefits from maritime.

     

    Capacity building

    The industry, according to stakeholders, has made significant progress, especially in human capacity building. They said substantial progress has been made in  ship regulation, port administration and operations, among other skills development, which are related to the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) requirement. Looking at ship regulation under flag state control, the stakeholders said the Buhari administration took a bold step to accept the IMO mandatory audit scheme, called IMO Member-State Audit Scheme (IMSAS). Many developing countries, such as Nigeria, do not like to subject themselves to the audit scheme.

     

    The Nigerian Ports Authority

    The aqcuisition of four 60-tonne buller-pull tug boats with state-of-the-art equipment and computerised engines by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), according to stakeholders, would boost efficiency and increase the government’s revenue at the ports.

    The boats, which were worth over $30 million, are Mt Daura, Mt Ubima, Mt Uromi and Mt Majaya. The boats, whose engines came from Rolls Royce, were built by DAMEN Engineering, Netherlands under the supervision of IMO. Operators commended its Managing Director Ms Hadiza Bala Usman for a job well done.

     

    NIMASA’s maritime

    security plan

    The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), stakeholders said, had taken steps to reposition the maritime security landscape.

    The security of the waterways of the sea is a key component of Director-General, Dr Dakuku Peterside’s policy, they said. With safety of the waterways, the agency could play a leading role in making shipping a viable alternative to the oil and gas money.

    NIMASA’s roles include crime prevention and maritime safety. With guaranteed maritime safety, Nigerian businesses, which according to the stakeholders, import at least five million cargo containers into the country yearly would increase their activities.

     

    TSA compliance

    One policy that has attracted commendations of maritime industry stakeholders is the President’s directive to all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to maintain a Treasury Single Account (TSA). This, operators said, is vital due to the fact that the industry boasts of several money-spinning government agencies. These include the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) and the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA).

    To meet their statutory roles and responsibilities, these government agencies, which generate billions of naira yearly, open and operate multiple accounts with several financial institutions across the country.

    It was alleged that through these multiple accounts, huge amounts of money are diverted into private pockets. To address these anomalies, Buhari vide a circular number HCSF/428/S.1/120 dated August 7, 2015, directed all MDAs to ensure that all revenues due the Federal Government or any of its agencies must be paid into the TSA or designated accounts maintained and operated by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) except otherwise expressly approved.

     

    Ports’ access roads

    The roads that lead to the seaports in Lagos, Warri, Onne, Port Harcourt, Calabar, and Sapele are impassable.

    These ports’access roads have not attracted the government’s attention in the last two years. Those leading to the Apapa and Tin-Can Island ports in Lagos are so bad that some stakeholders have described it as a “shame to the nation.”

    The bad roads have constituted  nightmares to consignees, importers, exporters, freight forwarders and other port users who use the roads to evacuate their goods.

    The roads are in sorry state as port users spend hours daily to access or exit the terminals.

     

    What has changed?

    The Principal Partner of Agbakoba Law (OAL) firm and other key maritime stakeholders said the Buhari administration has not done much to develop industry

    “There is no change. It is clear there is no progress, rather there are more declines. Just take Apapa as one of the key maritime areas; you can see the decline yourself. No roads, the port is in tatters. I told the Managing Director of NPA that the port is technically deficient. You cannot say it is an ocean-going port anymore,” Agbakoba said.

     

    Cargo Dwell Time

    Cargo dwell time (CDT), which is the average time a cargo remains in the terminal from the point of discharge to the point it exits the terminal, has not improved significantly since Buhari took over the mantle of leadership in the past two years. Human contact, which breeds corruption in the seaports, airports and international land borders, is yet to be eliminated, despite the campaign for 48-hour cargo clearance regime announced by the Federal Government.

    About 90 per cent of goods is still subjected to physical examination as against use of the mobile and fixed scanners. A lot of deals devoid of transparency and integrity take place at ports, airports and international land borders.

    According to industry players, this explains why many men and officers of NCS, Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration Control (NAFDAC), Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Department of Directorate Security Service (DSS), among other government agencies, often lobby to be posted to these places. They argued that these key areas of the economy have not witnessed the expected changes in the last two years.

     

    CVFF disbursement

    Indigenous ship owners said they were sad because they had not been able to access the Cabotage Vessel Finance Fund (CVFF) to grow their businesses.

    According to the stakeholders, NIMASA cannot disburse the funds because it does not have the skill to recoup the money after its disbursement. “There is a difference between policy making and regulation. On business operations, NIMASA, unfortunately, is given some responsibilities that are best done by the private sector. So, when NIMASA raises those funds from the freight charges and others, it can nominate a bank and deposit the money there and it is the bank’s responsibility to draw the lending process because they have the skills but when NIMASA  takes up the role of disbursing the funds, it has no capacity.

     

    Stakeholders’ views

    For Captain Adamu Biu and the ANLCA President Prince Olayiwola Shittu, the Buhari administration has made progress. They, specifically, mentioned NPA’s reviewing of the concession agreement the authority had with  terminal operators. “Nigeria is not a force to be reckoned with when it comes to shipping because of its lapses but it’s being improved upon gradually. I believe time should be given for more effectiveness in the industry because it takes a lot of work to put in and less discussion should be done but action. I feel this administration can do more by putting the right people in place to do the job actively and put all their hearts to it,” Biu said.

     

    Unlocking maritime

    potential

    The industry is a key sector of the  economy. As an oil-producing and exporting country, as well as a consumer nation, the country is a large market for foreign goods owing to its population. Thus, the industry holds the key to the nation’s growth.  To unlock the potential in this sector, policies and programmes that have  capacity to boost the economy must be implemented.

    Concerted efforts, stakeholders said, have to be made to address the problems militating against the industry’s efficiency. Nigeria’s strategic location in Africa puts her at advantage in becoming the hub of shipping activities.

     

    Crude oil lifting

    According to the Indigenous Ship Owners Association of Nigeria (ISAN), despite the country’s large export of crude and import of over 100 million tons of general cargo, no Nigerian flagged ship is plying international routes. Nigeria is also the only oil-producing nation without a national fleet, whereas Angola, which recently joined the ranks of oil producing countries, has a fleet for her oil deliveries.

    Some other shocking statistics indicate that Nigeria exports about 900 million barrels of crude oil yearly, but foreign vessels earn the freight of about $2.25 billion yearly carrying the country’s crude with no freight earning benefits to Nigeria. This needs to be addressed, if there will be a change of fortune, the stakeholders said.

     

    Multi-modal

    transportation

    Multi-modal transportation, Shittu said, is another area that needs to be properly addressed to unlock the wealth in the industry. Goods transported by sea, he said, should get to the owner of the cargo through rail and road transport and vice versa. This multi-modal transportation will facilitate trade and commerce, revenue generation for government finance and development of related economic activities.

     

    Shippers Council

    The Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC) needs the maximum support of the government to carry out its role as economic regulator to make the ports attractive and competitive in the sub region, the operator said.

    Its Executive Secretary, Mr Hassan Bello, according to the operators, has what it takes to carry out the necessary reforms in our ports if his opinion is sought.

    They advised the Federal Government to develop a plan to reach out to the people who have been in the industry.  The Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, they said, is new in the industry and there was no way he would understand the sector as much as those who have been in the industry for so long. They advised Amaechi to collaborate with the professionals to move the industry forward.

    “There should be a forum where players who understand the nitty gritty of the maritime industry need to meet with the Minister to brainstorm on moving the sector forward,” the stakeholders said.

  • Facebook, VConnect version 2.0 to equip SMEs

    Facebook, VConnect version 2.0 to equip SMEs

    VConnect will work with Facebook to equip SMEs in the service sector with the know-how required to significantly increase revenues, acquire new customers, stay ahead of the competition and leverage both the VConnect and Facebook platforms for business growth.

    This free one-day event is scheduled to take place on the 8th of June, 2017 in Ikeja, Lagos for 100 SMEs across the sector.

    This event is part of Facebook’s Boost your Business initiative, a program designed to educate SMEs on how to use digital platforms for business growth.

    Naveen Luthra, Head of Growth and Monetization, VConnect says: “SMEs form the backbone of Nigeria and their growth would augur well for the Nigerian economy. Through this series of SME Conferences, we would like to equip business to get better ‘access to the market’, to get more customers.

    “We value the partnership with Facebook for this conference, to jointly empower SMEs through the digital medium.”

    Small business owners in attendance will go home with a wealth of knowledge and new set of skills to grow their business, exposure to opportunities often ignored by SMEs much to their detriment as well as new additions to their network of connections.

    The SME Conference 2.0 is an invite only event. To register, intending participants are required to send an email to business@vconnect.com or register here to get an invite.