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Tag: Microsoft

  • Reports that Microsoft is leaving Nigeria untrue, false – Presidency

    Reports that Microsoft is leaving Nigeria untrue, false – Presidency

    The presidency has denied reports that Tech Company Microsoft is shutting down its Nigerian office.

    Media reports published earlier in the week claimed that Microsoft was allegedly leaving Nigeria, the report went viral and had a lot of netizens talking.

    Senior special assistant to the president on media and publicity, Temitope Ajayi, in a post on his X page branded these reports as untrue and misleading.

    He wrote: “The story that Microsoft is shutting down its Nigeria office is not true. Africa Development Centre is just a department within Microsoft business in Nigeria. Contrary to incorrect media reports the Africa Development Centre is also not shutting down.

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    “Microsoft, like any other organisation, is only re-aligning roles within the business, and few roles will certainly be impacted. Affected staff, who are less than 30, will be asked to apply for new roles within Microsoft – a standard practice within the organisation.

    “Those who can’t find new roles in other departments or those who want to seek new opportunities outside the system will be asked to go. The situation at Microsoft is not anywhere near the impression of the ‘earthquake’ that Peter Obi sensationally described.”

  • Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation, Microsoft to boost digital skills of civil servants

    Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation, Microsoft to boost digital skills of civil servants

    The Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation, in collaboration with the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF) and Microsoft, through its implementation partner, Wootlab Foundation, has announced an initiative to enhance the digital skills of civil servants across various Ministries in Nigeria.

    This is part of a strategic move by the OHCSF to prepare the public sector workforce for the digital era of the Civil Service.

    Through this partnership, Microsoft is helping lay a foundation for digital transformation in Nigeria, providing government employees with in-demand digital skills for the 21st-century workplace and empowering them to contribute towards the digitisation of important public services.

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    In 2023, the OHCSF, supported by the Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation, implemented an Enterprise Content Management Solution (ECMS) to automate all its work processes in line with the federal government’s e-governance drive. Recognising that the digital readiness of civil servants is a key driver of the success and sustainability of the ECMS, the Foundation partnered with Microsoft to develop a digital upskilling programme for civil servants.

    This programme will equip participating civil servants with essential digital skills, fostering a workforce that is not only digitally competent but also capable of driving continued innovation within the Civil Service.

    The official commencement of the digital upskilling programme was marked by a Memorandum of Understanding signing ceremony at the Federal Secretariat, OHCSF, in Abuja.

  • SOF, Microsoft, others train journalists on climate change reporting

    SOF, Microsoft, others train journalists on climate change reporting

    In a bid to equip media professionals and journalists in Nigeria with the skills and knowledge required to amplify narratives on climate adaptation and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Sterling One Foundation, in partnership with Microsoft, Sterling Bank, The Sun Media, Oando Foundation, Coca-Cola, and other private sector organizations held a two-day advocacy training for 100 journalists in Lagos.

    Themed: ‘Achieving the SDGs: Strengthening Media Capacities for Effective Reportage.’

    The two-day media capacity-strengthening workshop featured in-depth sessions covering an array of topics, including editorial issues, the art of effective climate reporting, and sustainable environmental practices.

    Distinguished facilitators at the event included Victor Emeruwa, Chief Executive Officer of The Sun Media Foundation, Fidelis Mbah, Senior Journalist AI Jazeera English TV, and Seun Akioye, Executive Director and Development Reporter.

    Speaking at the event, the Chief Executive Officer of the Sterling One Foundation, Mrs. Olapeju Ibekwe said that the training was more than just a conventional capacity-building exercise; it served as a resolute call to action.

    “With only seven years remaining until 2030, complacency and the status quo are no longer sustainable. It is now imperative for both the media and private sector to work with stakeholders to proactively address the challenges posed by climate change”.

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    “In line with this commitment, the Sterling One Foundation has taken on the responsibility of providing comprehensive training to over 100 journalists, utilizing both in-person and virtual formats, with a specific focus on the northeastern regions of the country,” she said.

    Microsoft Nigeria’s Country Manager, Ola Williams expressed her satisfaction with the training’s achievements and its anticipated societal impact. She also underscored Microsoft’s collaboration with various sectors and foundations that share the organization’s mission of effecting positive change by providing nationwide training opportunities to empower individuals.

    “Microsoft is committed to working with key stakeholders across both the public and private sectors to escalate the importance of the climate crisis. The goal of this two-day workshop was to serve as a catalyst for change, fostering an environment where the media assumed a central role in helping to combat climate change and advocate for sustainable practices”.

    “By bringing together industry experts and thought leaders, we created a platform for fruitful discussions, knowledge sharing, and strategic collaborations, with the potential to drive positive momentum in sustainability efforts and climate action,” she said.

  • Microsoft, Flutterwave to fast-track payment innovation in Africa

    Microsoft, Flutterwave to fast-track payment innovation in Africa

    Microsoft has announced a five-year strategic technology partnership with Flutterwave. 

    Through the new deal, Flutterwave will build its next generation platform on Microsoft’s Azure, with the goal of fast-tracking payment innovation in Africa and, in so doing, accelerating the growth of small businesses across the continent. Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) are crucial to Africa’s progress and development. 

    According to estimates, about 90 per cent of the continent’s population is employed by SMEs. Beyond employment, these businesses are often at the forefront of innovation, providing solutions to Africa’s most pressing societal challenges. Though small businesses and startups are the bedrock of the African economy, they are required to navigate enormous obstacles simply to succeed. 

    Research from the African Union Development Agency says about five out of seven SMEs in Africa will fail in their first year. Similarly, the average startup failure rate in Africa sits at around 54 per cent. 

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    A key challenge for SMEs and startups is a lack of access to financial services and the inability to transact seamlessly across local payment methods. While about 90 per cent of transactions in Africa are still cash-based, as many as half of small businesses are without access to credit. 

    “To drive sustainable growth in Nigeria, small businesses need the ability to participate more actively in the local and even global marketplace. This begins with digital financial inclusion. If we want to build a more resilient country and ultimately a more prosperous continent, we must begin by giving these businesses the digital financial services they need, not just to survive, but to thrive,” says Ola Williams, Country Manager, Microsoft Nigeria.

    Flutterwave’s mission has been exactly that – helping businesses overcome challenges surrounding access to financial services and connecting them to the global stage. It does this by enabling multiple payment modes, including local and international cards, mobile wallets and bank transfers. In fact, since inception, Flutterwave has made important inroads around the democratisation of payments in Africa. 

    Now by collaborating with Microsoft, the payments technology company aims to fuel growth and further revolutionise payments for businesses across Africa. Transitioning away from its legacy infrastructure and onto Azure will allow Flutterwave to process high volume payments at scale, ensuring a seamless and secure payment experience for its clients.Through Azure OpenAI Service, it also has the opportunity to scale its product offering to millions of merchants worldwide. 

    Founder/Chief Executive Officer, Flutterwave, Olugbenga Agboola, said: “In our journey at Flutterwave, we’ve always strived to touch lives by simplifying payments and connecting dreams to opportunities.Today, as we join hands with Microsoft, it feels like a family reunion of visionaries and go-getters. 

    “The excitement in our team is palpable because this partnership isn’t just about transactions – it’s about transformation. We’re honoured that Microsoft believes in our vision and trusts our capability. I am proud to say we’re not just dreaming of an inclusive digital Africa; we’re creating it.”

  • Microsoft: AI ‘ll drive African growth

    Technology giant, Microsoft, has said artificila intelligence (AI) is primed to be the driving force of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, adding however its widespread acceptance and adoption among businesses is still in early stages.

    It said last year was an important one in shifting current perceptions around AI, demonstrating it as a technology that is here to augment human capabilities, not replace them, and to benefit the speed and scale of any organisation, large or small.

    “These conversations have carried weight. In just four years, the number of global organisations deploying AI has increased by 270 per cent.

    “In Africa, the momentum is similar, and continues to grow as access to high quality broadband and cloud computing improves. Organisations are recognising AI’s ability to help with some of the continent’s most pervasive problems, from reducing poverty to improving healthcare and enhancing crop yields to feed a growing population.

    “Microsoft, through initiatives such as 4Afrika, has its sights set on making AI available to everyone on the continent, in line with our global mission to empower every person and organisation on the planet to achieve more. We are partnering with forward-thinking policy makers, innovative startups, technology partners, civil society groups and stakeholders to promote the growth of a vibrant AI ecosystem in Africa – one that enables inclusive growth and provides a clear and trusted path to digital transformation.

    “Many of our local partners, including SMEs and startups, have already begun their AI journeys. Nigerian startup, MyMusic, has experimented with chatbots to help users discover new local music.

  • Firstbank, Microsoft lift SMEs with technology

    First Bank of Nigeria Limited and Microsoft have partnered to provide supporting technology solutions at discounted rate to over 40 million Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

    FirstBank Deputy Managing Director, Gbenga Shobo, who spoke disclosed this at the Firstbank-Microsoft SME Partnership Launch  held in Lagos, said the lender wants to lift SMEs by encouraging them to embrace technology in their operations.

    Shobo, who spoke on the theme: The Accelerating impact of Digital  Transformation on Business Growth in Nigeria said that the target was to reach out to about 40 million SMEs and interested individuals.

    The event was attended by SME operators whose businesses have benefitted from use of technology solutions.

    According to Shobo, the bank is connecting the SMEs with Microsoft to enable the operators improve their operations digitally.

    He said: “The SMEs can buy some of the Microsoft solutions at discounted rates, pay in naira as against the dollar, thereby removing the stress of exchange rate which is sometimes a challenge for the SMEs. They now have a portal where they can ask for advice on the products and some extra sales support we can also get Microsoft to give them,” he said.

    He said the SMEs may not have been able to get the Microsoft solutions and products on their own, but for the two being FBN customers have managed to put them together.

    “We feel that SMEs are the major drivers of the economy in Nigeria today, because of the challenges of jobs creation and so most people are setting up businesses,” he said.

    “The SMEs segment is so important to the livelihood of many Nigerians, and we have seen that SMEs have the ability to grow.

    Also speaking, Director, Small and Medium Business Middle East and African Headquarter at Microsoft, Arjan Kotte, said the world is going digital, and that SMEs cannot be left behind.

    He said one million new devices will be coming online in 2020 while 60 per cent of computing will be in public cloud in 2025 adding that 25 per cent of workers’ time is wasted by information overload.

     

    Kotte, who spoke on the theme: “Digital Transformation in Small and Medium  Enterprises” said that the partnership between Microsoft and FirstBank was meant to help the SMEs take their operations higher in terms of technology and use of the company’s product.

    He said the company considered FirstBank’s reach and customer base as critical in reaching more SMEs that would need Microsoft solutions.

  • Microsoft: digital shaping financial services industry

    Digital transformation is remaking the world while artificial intelligence (AI) is its frontrunner, U.S. technology giant, Microsoft has said. It said no industry will be left untouched by the digital journey, adding that one sector that is seeing the fastest and most fundamental effects is the financial services industry (FSI).

    Its Regional General Manager, North, West, East, Central Africa, Levant & Pakistan, Microsoft, Ibrahim Youssry,  in a statement in Lagos, said FSI players are geared to be dramatically disrupted by the power of AI – both internally (in the ways they operate) and externally (in terms of dealing with clients and customers).

    According to him, a 2018 report from the World Economic Forum (WEF) on The New Physics of Financial Services showed this phenomenon at length, but one high-level take-away is that the AI changes cannot be overstated. The long-term impacts of AI are radical and transformative, putting the FSI ecosystem into a period of re-organisation.

    He said FSI has traditionally been dominated by large and established corporations, often with extensive heritage and market dominance. Through this, many FSI companies have enjoyed relatively low competition for customers, and have been slow to innovate and change ‘with the times’. Enter the leveling power of the cloud, accessible analytics and machine learning, and see how a scrappy, determined fintech startup can disrupt a whole market or sector.

    Youssry said many of these startups offer alternatives for banking, payments, transfers, payroll, credit, and other financial services. These digital-first businesses are highly agile, and are creating a whole new customer base that was underserved by established FSI companies – putting the pressure on older firms.

    As a result, many FSIs have started embracing cloud technology and artificial intelligence (AI) to improve their own agility, their array of service offerings, and their customer experiences. Recent studies, he argued, suggest that approximately 40 per cent of African banking customers prefer to use digital channels for transactions over branch channels.

    Added competition is good for the entire industry, and customers will benefit from new and improved technologies that change the way the industry interacts with them and meets their expectations, he explained.

    He said: “But just what form do these advances take? AI lies at the heart of things like chatbots, advanced customer credit assessment, relationship management, security, anti-money laundering and fraud detection.

    “Chatbots draw from big data and machine learning to respond to customer queries and concerns. They can streamline customer support on routine services like banking transactions, and make product recommendations. This is customer-facing AI that helps FSI companies be ever-present for their clients, while reducing the resources required to do so.

    “For fraud detection, AI-powered technology enables computers to mimic, extend and amplify the thought process of a human analyst, at a pace and scale unmatched by humans. It can review trillions of transactions in every possible portfolio in the organisation. Because of this, banks, fintechs and payment facilitators are able to detect or be alerted to potential fraud – receiving fast, efficient and accurate alerts of the likelihood of an individual’s card or account being compromised, for example.”

    According to him, AI and analytics can draw inference from vast stores of data and spot trends that are often beyond the possible scope of human sight, driving insight to analysts, investors and the like. AI is also able to evaluate an organisation’s public remarks and documents, bundle that up with sentiment analysis, and cross-correlate this with historical data to predict the performance of upcoming stocks, in literal split seconds.

     

     

    These functions, he said, provide agility and resilience in an increasingly risky global market. In short, they inject a new level of intelligence into our organisations. “Pairing this with our unique human capabilities of relationship management and creativity, and we unlock huge potential for our FSI companies.

     

     

    “Through Microsoft’s security solutions (in which we have invested more than $1 billion year-on-year), we are working with FSI organisations to improve their security standards globally. Solutions such as the Customer Lockbox for Microsoft Azure, for example, assists customers with controlling and auditing support engineers’ access to compute workloads on Azure that may contain data while resolving the support issue.

    “These solutions have a proven success record, evidenced by our work with Interswitch, a payments and fintech innovator in Africa. Through partnering with large banks and corporates in Nigeria, Interswitch has been able to build a bank-guarantee service on Azure that extends the reach of banking systems to non-traditional players, corporate suppliers and borrowers – allowing them to manage their supply chain financing under objective terms and transparency.

    “Within the next decade, Africa’s objective is to ensure that the next 100 million Africans are financially included. AI has the potential to achieve this. As AI adoption increases, we’re constantly thinking about how we can help institutions make the transition to modern innovations, while still taking advantage of legacy investments,” Youssry said.

  • Signal Alliance, Microsoft, Cisco collaborate on Azure Stack

    Signal Alliance, Microsoft and Cisco have partnered to deliver the Azure Stack solution to enterprises. Azure Stack is an innovative hybrid cloud computing solution designed to help organisations deliver their various services efficiently from their own data centers.

    Speaking at the workshop where the solution was unveiled in Lagos,  Signal Alliance Azure Practice Lead, Uche Nwaukwa, described the solution as an extension of Microsoft Azure, which brings the agility and fast-paced innovation of cloud computing to on-premises environments.

    At the workshop, participants were shown how Azure Stack can enable businesses and government agencies leverage cloud capabilities and still maintain regulatory requirements around data residency, including Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS) compliance.

    There was also a demonstration of how the solution serves as hybrid cloud computing platform for edge and disconnected scenarios which address latency and connectivity issues, including simple and easy-to-use analytics.

    While speaking on the development,  Head, Platforms & Applications, Signal Alliance, Sikiru Abass, said it enables organisations to build modern applications across hybrid cloud environments, balancing the right amount of flexibility and control. Moreover, with Azure Stack, developers can speed up new cloud application development by building on application components from the Azure Marketplace, including open source tools and technologies.

    With this consistent cloud platform, organisations can confidently make technology decisions based on business requirements, rather than business decisions based on technology complications.

    Azure Stack is an integrated solution made up of software and hardware components. Microsoft owns the software, while Cisco and other approved vendors support with their proprietary hardware. Signal Alliance acts as the partner delivering the solution and providing support for user organisations in Nigeria.

  • Vodacom partners Microsoft to boost business agility

    Vodacom Business Nigeria has entered into a strategic partnership with Microsoft (through its 4Afrika initiative) and Descasio to build capacity and help improve operational efficiency among its customers using the suite of Microsoft Azure Cloud platform services.

    Microsoft Azure is an open and flexible cloud platform which will enable customers to rapidly build, deploy and manage its applications, data, runtime and more in the cloud. The platform allows users to leverage existing skills using the world’s most popular languages, tools, and frameworks in a resilient, scalable and reliable global datacenter network.

    Speaking at a breakfast meeting at the Four Points by Sheraton Hotel, Victoria Island Lagos, Managing Director for Vodacom Business Nigeria, Wale Odeyemi said the vision of the firm is to be a leading digital company that empowers a connected society, adding that it has realised the benefits that strategic collaborations with key stakeholders within our ecosystem can bring to helping us realize this vision faster.

    He said:  “Vodacom actively pursues a collaborative approach that leverages the combination of core competencies of its partners to increase customer value that complement our already rich products and services in addressing our customers’ needs to optimize their operations through increased flexibility, agility and resiliency. In addition to our secure connectivity services, this collaboration with Microsoft and Descasio ensures our customers can move data and applications from their intelligent edges to Microsoft’s intelligent cloud, while accelerating their cloud adoption journeys.

    “As organisations re-invent themselves in response to ongoing digital disruptions, the appetite for cloud service adoption is also increasing as businesses seek to improve agility. Microsoft Azure addresses this need by providing diverse services under one platform, thereby creating more streamlined workflows and driving business efficiency.”

    Through the 4Afrika initiative, Microsoft aims to bring smart devices, connectivity and technology training to African entrepreneurs, youth, developers and graduates by focusing on three critical areas – World-class skills, Access and Innovation.

    Also speaking, Head, Strategic Partnerships for Microsoft 4Afrika, Soromfe Uzomah said through partnerships, Microsoft aims to empower businesses, across different verticals, with the tools they need to succeed in a technology driven world and the platforms they require to create breakthrough innovations and accelerate Africa’s digital transformation.

    “To successfully achieve  this transformation journey that enables business growth on the African continent, we need to depend not just on what we do in our own capacities but on the capabilities, functions, channels, and insights we all can tap into through partnering with others.

    “We are pleased to be a part of this initiative working in collaboration with Descasio to provide Cloud services to Vodacom customers. We look forward to working with Vodacom to help their customers optimise operations, extract insights from the data they generate and improve their decision-making capabilities to maintain a competitive advantage,” Uzomah said.

    Vodacom Business Nigeria will host services enabled by these intelligent Microsoft technologies to ensure that your business gains access to the latest software and business applications with state-of-the-art security for your company’s network, systems and applications at reduced prices, from anywhere and at any time.

  • Interswitch, Microsoft okay blockchain technology for SMEs

    With innovative blockchain technology supply and financing service for Small and Medium Enterprises in Nigeria will be seamless, Interswitch and Microsoft have said.

    The finance solution and digital technology driven companies made this known in Lagos stating that all values chains in the supply industries and across Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) ecosystem can drive economic value with the solution.

    As gathered, Interswitch Blockchain Service (Supply Chain Finance Module), is built and hosted using the Microsoft Azure Blockchain technology which is considered as secured with scalable cloud solutions that accelerate and support the next generation of blockchain applications.

    According to Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer at Interswitch, Mitchell Elegbe, the Interswitch Blockchain Service has been introduced in Nigeria to bring together entrepreneurs, major financial institutions and corporates organisations to foster end-to-end visibility for fast and seamless trade financing in supply chain operations.

    “In our 15 years of operation, we have experienced the bottle necks associated with the existing corporate-based financing infrastructure in Nigeria.

    “This is why we are happy to partner with Microsoft, by leveraging the advanced technology of the Microsoft Azure Blockchain, to prove the possibility of building a distributed ledger that is practical, viable and has the propensity to solve some of Nigeria’s most difficult financial and logistic problems,” he said.

    With the launch of the Interswitch Blockchain Service (Supply Chain Finance Module), small to middle-sized businesses can access more funding in a shorter time (up to three weeks) from participating banks such as United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA), Guaranty Trust Bank Plc (GTB) and Zenith Bank Plc and enjoy increased sales cycles from participating corporations such as the Dangote Group.

    While the application of blockchain is usually associated with cryptocurrency, the Interswitch Blockchain service does not deploy the use of cryptocurrency in its application. Transaction enquiries and verifications will be handled by authorized officials from participating entities, without the incentives of a cryptocurrency.

    Principal Program Manager, Microsoft Azure Blockchain at Microsoft Corporation, Michael Glaros, said; “We are excited about this partnership with Interswitch. This will be the first enterprise-grade blockchain service in Nigeria, and one of only a handful of production blockchain applications in use by banks and corporates globally. The blockchain technology is still in its infancy in Nigeria and we are happy to pioneer its deployment in partnership with Interswitch, an innovative and forward-thinking company which has evolved its business around financial technology”

    The Interswitch Blockchain Service, armed with a single version of the truth across the supply chain, allows Nigerian lenders and suppliers to identify and build relationships with high performing entrepreneurs. This will help empower people to create more jobs, more wealth, and a more prosperous Africa.

    “Interswitch, in collaboration with Microsoft, has built a platform that will allow anyone to build blockchain-based solutions easily and more cost effectively. It is truly blockchain for everyone with lower costs and shorter time.” Mitchell concluded.