The Nation Newspaper

Tag: ICT

  • ‘How we deployed ICT to prevent rigging in Osun election’

    ‘How we deployed ICT to prevent rigging in Osun election’

    The Osun State Governor,  Rauf Aregbesola has revealed how the deployment of Information Communication Technology (ICT) in monitoring and reporting of events as they unfolded during the August 9 governorship election in the state prevented falsification of results.

    The governor, in a statement by the Director Bureau of Communication and Strategy, Mr. Semiu Okanlawon,was quoted as stating this while delivering a keynote address titled “Broadband: Oxygen for Digital Economy” at the Africa Digital Forum and Award 2014 organised by the ICT Watch Network at the Sheraton Hotels and Towers in Ikeja, Lagos Sunday evening.

    Aregbesola pointed out that ICT was put to use by the various situation rooms set up by the government to monitor, get results and happening across all the units, wards and Local governments in the state helped in no small measure.

    He bemoaned the situation of the country at this jet age lacking the capacity to deploy Internet and other advanced technologies to locate the whereabouts of the Chibok school girls several months after their abduction by Boko Haram insurgents.

    The governor noted that Nigeria has a new opportunity for economic resurgence in the digital economy age, saying that the nation has the requisite infrastructure both material and human.

    He said, “We have a huge human population (167 million) with equally immense needs. This is a potentially immense market with which we can trade our way from poverty to riches. Added to this is the demography of that population.

    “Our population is predominantly composed of youths who are energetic, enthusiastic, and innovative”. The governor stressed

    Aregbesola noted that the Osun experience in the use of modern technology and the use of Internet could be a model for national ICT development on a non-partisan basis.

    The governor pointed out that the use of ICT will enhance greater deployment and consumption of broadband.

    According to Aregbesola, “In Osun, without being immodest, we can say that ICT has been a major plank of governance. We pioneered e-learning with the invention of Opon Imo. We have also been able to provide card based e-credit for farmers. Of course, we have also deployed e-based payroll and staff ID card on MasterCard platform directly connected to the holder’s account.

    “We have also devised e-ID Card for all pupils in public schools and the card will now serve as payment instrument for our home-grown school feeding and health programme (O’MEALS).

    “We set up the OYESTECH, an institution for training youths in the use, assembly and repair of electronic gadgets from plasma television, computers to mobile phones”. The governor told the gathering.

    Aregbesola held that Nigeria has a great potential for enhancing development in this information age through the digital economy.

    He noted that there are still huge potentials in road traffic monitoring and control, CCTV camera, weather monitoring and forecast, national population database among others.

    He said, “What this means is that there is power and potential in numbers. A great number of people mean a potentially great variety of needs to be met.

    “The good thing is that in meeting these needs, a self-reinforcing cycle is created in which people have access to employment, are productively engaged, earn income, create wealth, and spread prosperity with accompanying prospect of material uplift and satisfaction”. Aregbesola pointed out.

    The governor added that any human mass is a potential source of wealth generation from which positive developments can spring, stressing that what is required therefore is creativity in turning the potential into public good.

  • Students advised to improve knowledge in ICT

    Students have been urged to upgrade their knowledge in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to conduct a good research. They were told to acquire skills in the use of Microsoft word to enhance their writing skills.

    The charge was made at two-day Dialogue on Media and Communication organised by the Department of Mass Communication of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN).

    Ben Ogwo, a professor of Industrial, Technical and Workforce Education, was the keynote speaker at the ocassion, while Mr Chodo Nwakama, the Immediate past president of Public Relations Consultants Association of Nigeria (PRCAN), chaired the event.

    Ogwo advised researchers to keep abreast with the latest trend of the social media and also seek research funds from local and international organisations, government agencies as well as private individuals.

    The don highlighted cognitive skill, writing and word processing skill, internet savvy as the skills required of a prospective grant writer.

    He said: “The manner you comport and carry yourselves is key to securing a grant, because your funders will have to run a background check on your activities before releasing money for the execution of your research project.”

    The Executive Director of the Sun newspapers, Mr Steve Nwosu, who spoke at the event, told the participants to be proud of their profession as it would enable them overcome the challenges they might face.

    Nwosu, who spoke on From classroom to newsroom, urged students to identify their areas of interest in mass communication while still in school to enable them pursue their passion after school. He told them to take advantage of their access to modern tools and establish professional journalism practice on social media and other online channels.

     

  • Zinox chief urges gender parity in ICT devt

    Zinox chief urges gender parity in ICT devt

    Chairman, Zinox Group, Mr. Leo Stan Ekeh, has urged  stakeholders in the information communication technology (ICT)  to create a level playing field for women in the industry.

    He said given the appropriate mix of innovation, business focus, accountability and ambition, women entrepreneurs could take the centre stage of on-going revolution of the industry in the 21st Century and relegate their male counterparts to the back seat.

    Ekeh, who made specific reference to global tech giants, IBM which now has Ginni Rometty, a woman as its CEO, pointed at the increasing pivotal role women in the corporate world are playing in the global space.

    He said: “Women are naturally more structured, trustworthy, less greedy and more prayerful than men. These innate qualities have strategically endowed women with the basic ingredients for leadership. As entrepreneurs, all you need to do is combine these innate qualities with absolute commitment, capacity for innovation, credibility and sound digital knowledge and very soon, the male folk will be struggling to keep pace with the women in the industry.

    “ICT is a business of the future; one that you can bequeath to your children and unborn generations. It is an industry of constant innovation, requiring a sound business model and structure. I encourage you to enhance your knowledge in the digital business and build capacity, which will in turn enable you accommodate the short-term business shocks and eventually take charge of the digital economy.”

    Eke, who was the guest speaker at an interactive breakfast meeting tagged: Women in ICT organised by Technology Distributions Limited (TDL), at Sheraton Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos, urged female participants to become more ambitious in growing their businesses and targeting bigger ventures

    He urged women to see themselves as equal partners with men, adding that participants should leverage on the emerging force of e-commerce and m-commerce, which has the potential of laying a foundation for women to control the wealth and leadership of nations in the third quarter of the century.  While assuring the women, ICT entrepreneurs of the utmost support of TDL in their respective roles as business partners, the Zinox chief cautioned against excessive borrowing and emotional decisions, which he said, are two factors capable of negating business success.

    TDL’s Chief Executive Officer, Mrs. Chioma Ekeh, urged women entrepreneurs to break out of the outdated stereotypes that have long held them back and taken their rightful place in the scheme of things in driving the revolution in the ICT industry.

    She said women are credible, balanced, emotionally intelligent, proven masters of crisis and opportunity management as well as great managers of resources. Mrs. Ekeh urged the participants to borrow a leaf from Facebook’s Chief Operating Officer, Sheryl Sandberg, who has urged women to seek leadership roles and own their success.

    She said: “It is no accident that women make up over half of the world’s population. Why then are there so few women occupying positions of authority?  It is high time we unleashed our potential and began to take charge of things happening around us. There is a growing trend of more women in the ICT. This is quite encouraging. In spite of the challenges in the system, we must capitalise on this to lead the revolutions in the industry.”

  • IMSU gets ICT Centre, Law building

    IMSU gets ICT Centre, Law building

    The Imo State University (IMSU) has got two new buildings, courtesy of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund).

    The projects are Information and Communication Technology (ICT) centre and an ultra-modern building for the Faculty of Law.  They were commissioned by the Minister of State for Education, Prof Viola Onwuliri, who represented President Goodluck Jonathan. The buildings are close to each other.

    Prof Onwuliri urged management and students to make good use of the facilities, saying they were important assets for the school’s development.  She said the Federal Government was committed to transforming the education sector by ensuring projects meant for tertiary institutions were provided without political consideration.

    The minister also revealed that the government was planning to execute another N1.5 billion project in the university. She said: “The Federal government is making effort to ensure that education in Nigeria is something other nations will envy and copy. We want students to reciprocate this gesture by shunning examination malpractices and cultism.”

    The Vice-Chancellor (VC), Prof Ukachukwu Awuzie, said the institution had been on sustained development since 1992. He said TETFund intervention would complement the effort of the state government to provide adequate facilities in the university.

    The VC said the school could boast of e-library with the help of TETFund, praising the agency for its effort to promote quality education.

    The chairman of TETFund, Dr Musa Babayo, represented by the agency’s Secretary, Mallam Suleiman Bogoro, said the agency had spent N4 billion on various projects in the university in the last seven months. He said: “Aside infrastructural development, TETFund also promotes human development through capacity building for students in various institutions.”

    Some students, who spoke to CAMPUSLIFE, hailed the agency for investing in the university. Callistus Mbam, a 300-Level Theatre Arts student, said: “I am privileged to witness the occasion and I could feel the usefulness of the building to improving quality of teaching. The projects will affect us in positive ways.”

    Victor Unegbu, a 400-Level Law student, said: “We will always be grateful to TETFund, Federal Government and the management for making these projects a reality. For the Law students, we are happy to have been given the best building as our faculty. The conduciveness of the building will make us improve in our studies and knowledge.”

     

  • Owo prince boosts ICT education

    A Philanthropist, Prince Adesola Olateru-Olagbegi, has donated a computer skills acquisition centre to the people of Owo Local Government Area of Ondo State.

    The centre is an addition to a resource centre built by his family in honour of his late mother, Olori Florence Adeoti Olagbegi-Olateru.

    The centre is expected to offer Information Communication Technology training to adults, pupils and students for free.

    The donor said since the centre was constructed in 2009 by the children of the late Olori, the place has served as an adult training centre for residents of the ancient kingdom and produced three sets of trainees in various fields.

    He noted that he decided to establish the computer centre because he discovered that many people in the community do not have knowledge of ICT.

    “Today, there is nothing you want to do without computer and I am worried that our people not only in Owo but in some other places in Nigeria are still lagging behind. We still have some university graduates who cannot operate computer and this centre will serve and train them freely.

    “This is our own quota to the development our community because government cannot do it alone. This community belongs to us. We should focus on maintaining all the government infrastructures and as individuals we should come out and see what we can do to support our communities.”

    While urging residents of the community to register free for the training, Olateru-Olagbegbi assured them that he would continue to collaborate with people who are ready to impact on the community.

    A Senior Special Assistant to Governor Olusegun Mimiko on Direct Labour, Mrs. Mobolaji Suara, urged the people to embrace the opportunity  and be computer literate.

     

  • UDUS students seek improved ICT

    Students of the Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto (UDUS)  have taken to social media and other online platforms to decry the poor state of information technology in the institution. The students believe that, the university, unlike its counterparts in the region, is reluctant to embrace the ICT , which they said could slow down progress of the institution.

    The students want the management to take advantage of the Internet to improve service delivery. They praised the authorities on the introduction of online registration for accommodation, stressing that the management could do more.

    Abdulbasit Adewole, a 300-Level Law student, said the university’s technological rating was not encouraging. He suggests that the school could take up the challenge to bring succor to the situation.

    Ibrahim Sodiq, a student of Physics Education, believes the school lags behind in technology. He wrote: “Most of our activities are still being done manually. Processing of results in takes time and this is because we are lagging behind in the use of technology. Only a few lecturers give online assignments.”

    Abdulhafeez Adebayo, a 400-Level Computer Science student, disagreed that the university does not make use of technology. He said the institution was making efforts to build on its technological strength and make its working smooth.

    “The management has demonstrated its readiness to build on its ICT facilities, which would enable her students and staff to register for biometric security system and e-learning system,” he stated.

    He said the biometric system was part of the recommendations proposed at the last National Association of Computer Science Students (NACOS) conference held in the university auditorium.

    On the introduction of the computer-based tests, Adebayo said the institution had everything needed for its implementation but said students needed to be trained on the use of the facility before use.

    The former Dean of Students’ Affairs, Dr Ibrahim Magawata, said that the construction of a standard ICT centre had been sponsored by the Central Bank of Nigeria, adding that work was in progress towards its completion.

  • CWG extends ICT academy to new frontiers

    The  CWG Academy which started at its Lagos Headquarters four years ago, and has successfully trained and placed over 500 ICT professionals into various fields of industry, has been extended to other operational bases of the pan African company, including Accra, Kampala, Port Harcourt and Abuja, with plans to incorporate Cameroon by the first half of next year.

    In a statement, the goal of the CWG Academy is to bridge the workforce knowledge gap in Africa by equipping fresh graduates with the required skills that will make them employable or become successful entrepreneurs.

    Of the over 500 graduates from the Academy, about 85 per cent have been employed in leading companies such as IBM, CWG, MTN, Standard Chartered Bank, Stanbic-IBTC, Chevron, Cadbury, Etisalat, Ericsson and Unilever among others, while about 10 per cent have opted to become technology entrepreneurs.

    Some of the beneficiaries said they have benefited immensely from the session. Ezekiel Oyerinde presently working with IBM West Africa as a Storage Systems Specialist says “I am a graduate of Biochemistry but ventured into IT after school. Though, I have gone to a couple of Computer schools, the CWG Academy was the opener for me into the world of endless possibilities in IT”. Continuing, Oyerinde said “during the interview stage of my previous employment at MTN, I was pleasantly surprised to see that among those shortlisted, the CWG Academy graduates emerged tops. I consider myself blessed to have had a solid foundation provided through this laudable initiative called CWG Academy. I am grateful to CWG management and the coordinator of the programme”.

    Similarly, Dominic Julian currently working as sales executive in one of the IT companies in Nigeria, attributed his career development to his encounter with the CWG Academy. According to Dominic, he was attracted to the academy because of CWG’s Chief Executive Officer, Austin Okere who is a renowned leader in the industry, and was overwhelmed at the magnitude of the training he received from the faculty.

    “The fluidity exhibited by the technical team as they delivered well-thought-out interactive lectures and instructive practical training could only have come from excellent planning and attention to detail formulated by a seasoned team”Dominic said.

  • NITDA boss hosts ICT merit award

    NITDA boss hosts ICT merit award

    Director General, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Mr. Peter Olu Jack will be chief host at the 2014 National Information Technology Merit Award (NITMA) organised by the Nigeria Computer Society (NCS).

    A new innovation at this year’s NITMA is also the presentation of the first set of Special Recognition Awards to individuals and organisations advancing Nigeria’s digital agenda. The DG of NITDA’s high level presence is in keeping with the agency’s mandate of fostering the development and growth of IT in Nigeria, and is particularly in line with the upcoming review of Nigeria’s National ICT Strategic Plan being coordinated by NITDA.

    NITDA boss as NITMA Chief Host sends a strong message that the growth of Nigeria’s ITC industry and profession is a top national priority. A functioning, purposeful, growing and sustainable ITC sector is at the heart of all nations that are truly independent. Recognition or its lack will impact on Nigeria’s ability to succeed in the global digital economy. NITMA 2014 is a platform NCS uses to emphasise the importance of excellence in information technology. For NCS and the entire IT community, NITMA is not just an award ceremony; it is about genuine independence, it is about shaping Nigeria’s future.

  • CWG urges local content application in ICT

    CWG urges local content application in ICT

    The Group Chief Executive Officer, Computer Warehouse Group, Mr Austin Okere, has urged stakeholders in the information communications technology (ICT) industry to apply the spirit of local content in the industry to achieve sustainable growth.

    Speaking as a panelist on Local Content at the just concluded Association of Telecoms Companies of Nigeria (ATCON’s) Telecom Executives and Regulator’s Forum at the Eko Hotels & Suites, he said the right type of local content policy should be developed and applied to the industry.

    According to Mr. Okere, “We should not stampede the NCC into taking actions that will impede the much needed Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the sector. We should not confuse local content with taking businesses from foreign investors and handing them over to locals without recourse to technical ability and financial capability within the value chain.”

    Austin said while telecoms operation is extremely financially intensive, the rewards are very slow in manifesting. For example Etisalat, with over 15million subscribers, has admitted that it is not making any profit despite huge investments on its network since inception. Also, many of the local code division multiple access (CDMA) operators are finding it increasingly difficult to sustain the heavy investments needed to make their networks viable, and are bleeding subscribers at an alarming rate, threatening their very existence.

    Austin made a distinction between the capital-intensive laying of communication pipes which he referred to as ‘plumbing’, and the utilisation of the pipes to provide value added services such as e-commerce.

    In his view, local entrepreneurs will benefit more in the value chain by taking advantage of the communication infrastructure to launch hitherto unrealisable business models as has been demonstrated by Jumia, Konga, and the CWG Group which has taken advantage of the pervasive broadband infrastructure in the country to launch a cloud-based subscription business providing technology to SMEs tagged CWG2.0.

    Okere gave examples of how local companies such as Alibaba in China have taken this initiative to create businesses much bigger than the telecoms ‘plumbing providers’. Other examples are Google, Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter in the United States (U.S.) and MPESA in Kenya.

    He warned: “Local content should not be about targeting a bigger share of the small cake, but rather baking a much bigger cake that can go round everybody, with people paying in the areas of their greatest strengths.”

    The Executive Vice Chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Eugene Juwah, challenged local operators to ensure that they imbibe adequate skills, access to finance and also display the requisite commitment so that they could be taken seriously.

     

  • FBN, EKSU partner on ICT

    A high-level delegation from the First Bank Nigeria (FBN) Plc led by its Executive Director, Mr. Gbenga Shobo has visited the Management of Ekiti State University (EKSU) to discuss collaborations in the areas of Information Communication Technology (ICT).

    Shobo, who led the team, said the bank is pleased with the performance of the EKSU edu-portal which is run by the financial institution and plans to upgrade the facility to include e-learning to benefit the students

    He added that the edu-portal can incorporate details of students’ transcripts from entry point of admission to graduating year.

    The Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Academic, Prof Ibiyinka Ogunlade, who represented the Vice- Chancellor, Prof. Oladipo Aina thanked the team for its cooperation and described the relationship between EKSU and the Bank as beneficial.

    Ogunlade, however, explained that there is need for both partners to discuss the way forward to strengthen the existing relationship.