The Nation Newspaper

Tag: mobile phones

  • ‘33m Nigerians use Facebook via mobile phones’

    By Chikodi Okereocha

    Technology giant Facebook has said about 33 million Nigerians are accessing the social networking platform using their mobile phones.

    Its Head, Communications, sub-Saharan Africa, Facebook, Kezia Anim-Addo, gave this figure while speaking on the side of a “Facebook Content Review Workshop” in Nairobi, Kenya.

    Noting that the figure was as at the last quarter of this year, Anim-Addo said the 33 million Nigerians, who are active facebook users via mobile phones was an indication of Nigeria’s growing mobile penetration rate.

    The workshop was organised to bring media practitioners across Africa up to speed with facebook’s efforts to enforce its community standards aimed at tackling and controlling hate speech, fake news, nudity and other forms of offensive content or posts.

    Read Also: Facebook reaffirms commitment to combat hate speech- official

    Earlier in her presentation at the workshop, Content Policy Associate Manager, Facebook Sub-Sahara Africa, Ms Fadzai Madzingira, said the social media giant has over 35, 000 people reviewing contents in more than 50 languages daily.

    According to her, the review was necessary to guarantee the security and integrity of the platform by taking down contents and posts that violet facebook’s community standards.

    Madzingira said, for instance, hate speech creates an environment of intimidation, exclusion and in some cases may promote real-world violence, hence it would not be allowed on the platform.

  • ACAI/IITA-CWMP signs MoU with Viamo to promote ‘Six Steps’ toolkit through mobile phones

    The African Cassava Agronomy Initiative (ACAI)/IITA- Cassava Weed Management Project have signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Viamo to promote the Six Steps to Cassava Weed Management extension toolkit via the 3-2-1 mobile service of Airtel.

    The 3-2-1 mobile service will allow Nigerian farmers to have access to good agricultural practices developed by the Cassava Weed Management project through an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system for as much as 10 times in a month free of charge.

    “Through the mobile service, we aim to reach thousands of farmers especially women with information that would transform their cassava productivity,” said Dr Alfred Dixon, Director for Development & Delivery at IITA, and Project leader of the Cassava Weed Management Project.

    He explained; “The use of the 3-2-1 mobile service will leverage on the advantage of the mobile subscriber-base in Nigeria with subscriptions of about 150 million and 97.2 million persons that use the internet. Furthermore, the availability of cheaper smartphones in Nigeria has given phone access to about 15 million persons, making it possible for this population to access improved weed control practices on mobile phones.”

    The Project Coordinator of ACAI Dr. Pieter Pypers sees the collaboration as strategic for the project as it aims to deliver best bet agronomic practices at scale.

    According to him, in most of rural Africa, information and knowledge is usually passed by word of mouth, (oral communication therefore presents the opportunity of knowledge/technology transfer.)

    Country Manager for Viamo, Harriet Blest, noted tha the 3-2-1 mobile service will bring messages from the Six Steps to Cassava Weed Management to farmers in local languages.

    “All that farmers need to do is to get an Airtel SIM card and dial 3-2-1 and he or she will get the toolkit. To ensure that farmers enjoy the 3-2-1 service with messages on the Six Steps to Cassava Weed Management, a validation workshop was conducted recently, drawing both private and public agricultural experts,” she stressed.

    ACAI Digital Extension and Advisory Services Specialist, Godwin Atser who made a presentation of the progress recorded in weed control emphasized the benefit of using the Six Steps to Cassava Weed Management toolkit for cassava cultivation, adding that farmers using the toolkit were doubling the yield of cassava from the current national average of 9 tons per ha to more than 20 tons per ha.

  • ‘Mobile phones, bad posture increase neck, back pains’

    prolonged use of mobile phones and bad posture at work places are responsible for the increase in neck and back pains among young adults in Nigeria, a physiotherapist, Mr Vincent Soetan, has said.

    Soetan, a consultant at Vedic Lifecare Hospital, Lagos, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterday in Lagos.

    According to the Brand Executive, Physiocraft Allied Health Services, a medical outlet that cares patients with physical conditions, neck and back pains are becoming very common in the young working class.

    He said: “Cervical spondylosis, generally called neck pain is actually prevalent, especially among the work force in corporate bodies such as bankers, teachers, nurses and health professionals.

    “I see more people with spinal problems, especially among the working class.

    “For every 10 referrals that visit the hospital, about five of them will have musculoskeletal disorders and if you probe further, it is related to work and lifestyle.

    “Most times, the condition is due to very bad postures, even drivers experience a lot of neck pain. It is also very common because of the increased use of mobile phones and laptops; the posture we adopt while operating these gadgets is what affects the neck. Most times, people bend their necks so much for long hours while operating these gadgets. This, in the long run leads to neck pain over time that can also lead to other problems later in life.”

    According to him, the challenges facing the condition include reduced productivity at work places and people visiting quacks and getting wrong treatment due to lack of awareness.

    The physiotherapist said: “Most people are not aware of what to do and so they receive very wrong treatment for the condition. What people do most times is to massage and use some mentholated ointment on the neck and they think it solves the problem. The problem only persists and causes further damage which can lead to other problematic conditions,” he said.

    The physiotherapist stressed the need to improve people’s knowledge on this from secondary to tertiary institutions.

    “Postural correction should be taught in schools; children should be taught how to lift things and maintain an upright posture at an early age. We need to begin to include it in health education, because neck pain is a non-communicable disease and one of the leading causes of disability worldwide.

     

     

     

  • LCC goes tough on motorists over use of mobile phones

    Lekki Concession Company Limited  (LCC) is set to partner the police and other law enforcement authority to prosecute motorists using the mobile phones while driving on the Lekki, Etiosa, Epe Expressway .

    The Head of the Route and Incidents Management of the company, Mr Michael Aina, made this revelation in a press statement during the week.

    He said the company took the decision in conjunction with the law enforcement agencies in order to reduce the rate of accidents on the expressway.

    Aina noted that henceforth any motorist found making use of the mobile phone while driving on the Eti-Osa-Lekki-Epe Expressway would be arrested and prosecuted according to the laws of Lagos State.

    “We have warned the motorists many times on the danger of using mobile phones while driving to no avail. The use of the mobile phones distracts motorists while driving and this has led to some avoidable accidents on the expressway. If the company is to reduce the rate of accidents on our roads to the bearest minimum, the laws of Lagos State concerning dangerous driving must be invoked. Lives and property of the people plying the expressway are precious to the management of the company, “ he said.

    Aina warned motorists to desist from giving money to any member of the Route and Incidents team for assisting them on the expressway in emergency situations, most especially during vehicle breakdowns as these services are complimentary.

    “Towing of broken down vehicles on the expressway is free. This is part of the company’s free added services to motorists plying the Eti-Osa-Lekki-Epe Expressway,”he added.

    He implored motorists to obey traffic rules and regulations by making use of designated bus stops and lay-bys in order to enhance the smooth flow of traffic on the expressway.

  • Expert cautions on using mobile phones, computers at night

    Dr Omale Charles, Managing Director, Fortress Eye Hospital and Medical Centre, Abuja, has advised those who spend long periods of time on their mobile devices at night to always leave room lights on.

    Charles gave this advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Abuja.

    He said this would go a long way to reduce the level of light directed to the eyes which could lead to damage to one’s vision.

    The expert was speaking on the sidelines of this year’s World Glaucoma Week (WGW) commemorated from March 12 to March 18, with the theme: “Beat Invisible Glaucoma”.

    Charles said those who spent long periods of time on these devices and also computers should ensure they took breaks away from the devices and gadgets in order to protect the eyes from damage caused by excessive exposure to light.

    “Working long hours on the computer can affect the eyes and vision. This can trigger a negative reaction to the eyes and cause headache, loss of concentration and ultimately predisposes one to develop Computer Visual Syndrome.

    “If this continues on a long term basis, it can lead to permanent damage to the eyes.

    “Therefore, one should make efforts to wear protective eye glasses or use a computer screen so that the level of direct light to the eyes is reduced.

    “When you work on the computer screen for long periods you should try to take a break from your work once in a while.

    “From 20 seconds to about 20 minutes try to look at least 20 feet away and that way you break the continuous exposure of the light to your eyes which can result in damage to the element of vision.”

    He also cautioned the public, especially those predisposed to or at risk of developing eye diseases against excessive consumption of alcohol.

    Charles said consuming alcohol in excess quantity could affect the nerves of the eyes increasing the chances of damage to one’s vision.

    The expert, who described alcohol as a depressant, said the substance once consumed overtime gave a feeling of euphoria and subsequently affected one’s thinking and coordination.

    Charles said alcohol could only give such feeling to an individual because it worked through the nerves, adding that any substance that worked using the nerves could affect vision.

    “For someone who already has a biological predisposition to glaucoma, taking alcohol or any other substance that can affect your nerves, thereby accelerating damage to the nerve of vision.

    “Another thing to consider is the quantity of alcohol consumed by an individual and the level of concentration of this alcohol.

    “Drug and substance abuse also has negative effects on the eyes; activities such as direct gaze at the sun can expose one to ultra-violent radiation.

    “When moving outdoors, you should wear protective eye shade or a face cap to protect your eyes from this radiation because it can cause external growth within the eyes and can serve as a trigger for vision impairment.”

    He listed other activities that could directly affect the eyes to include welding, adding that the iron particles caused direct trauma to the eyes

  • Crooks prowl on mobile phones, cyberspace

    Crooks prowl on mobile phones, cyberspace

    Crooks are getting more audacious as they hide under the anonymity provided by the cyberspace and pre-registered subscriber identity module (SIM) cards to swindle unsuspecting bank account owners and people who buy goods on social media platforms, LUCAS AJANANAKU reports.

    Her story is pathetic. Bisola’s (not real name) ‘friend’ on one of the social media platforms had opened an account and advertised Brazilian shoes and bags for sale. She fell for one of the bags and a pair of shoes. After online bargaining, the seller and the proposed buyer agreed on price and mode of payment. It was agreed that payment be made into the bank account of the seller while delivery will be made afterwards.

    Bisola, who has been an online friend of the merchant for a long time, had no reason to suspect that she was going to be defrauded. They have shared so many things in common through chatting and had become ‘real friends.’ So she had no reason at all to suspect any foul play. She paid the money into the bank account and waited for the goods to be delivered.

    The next thing the fake merchant did was to block her. “I was shocked that I could no longer get across to her. She blocked me completely after paying the money into her account. I was helpless because the banks too have the policy of protecting their customers. So I have resigned to fate,” she said.

    Bisola is but one of the many victims of the antics of crooks who use the anonymity provided by the cyberspace and pre-registered SIM cards by unpatriotic elements to wreak havoc on unsuspecting members of the public.

    These unscrupulous elements brazenly use mobile phone numbers to send their scam mails. They are emboldened by the fact that they may never be traced through the phone numbers because they have circumvented the SIM registration guidelines of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).

    Speaking at a cybercrime forum organised by the America Embassy in Lagos, Mr. Remi Afon of the Cyber Security Experts Association of Nigeria, (CSEAN) said cybercrimes have become a global threat, adding that addressing the issue required collaboration.

     

    Cybercrime facts

     

    According to American tech giant, Symantec Corporation, cybercrime has now surpassed illegal drug trafficking as a criminal money-maker. The company which produces software for security, storage, backup and availability – and offers professional services to support its software, said somebody’s identity is stolen every three seconds as a result of cybercrime.

    Another American tech company, Verizon said 89 per cent of breaches had a financial or espionage motive while an American business magazine published bi-weekly, Forbes, has projected that cybercrime costs will hit $2trillion by 2019.

    Cybersecurity Ventures estimated that cybercrime damages is expected to cost the world $6 trillion by 2021.

     

    Figures

    According to Afon, quoting the NCC, he said over 97 million Nigerian internet users while between 2012 and 2014 Nigeria lost N64billion to cybercrimes, according to the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF).

    The Office of the National Security Adviser said N127 million is lost yearly to cybercrime in Nigeria while another tech firm, Ultrascan said $9.3 billion is the cost of cybercrimes that originates from Nigeria globally.

     

    Cybersecurity progress

    According to him, progress has been made in the country as the Cybercrime Act was signed into law on May 15 last year while the National Cybersecurity Policy & National Cybersecurity Strategy was also launched last year.

    On April 20, last year too, Cybercrime Advisory Board was inaugurated, adding that cybercrime prosecutions are picking up while the establishment of Computer Emergency Response Teams (CERRT.ng by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) & ngCert by the ONSA) is a healthy development towards combatting the menace.

     

    Cybercrime threats, trends

    Popular threats and trends include 419, phishing, social engineering, spear phishing CEO, malware, cyberbullying, identity theft and ransomware

    Attack trends

    According the CSEAN chief, 95 per cent of enterprise attacks are through email while 30 per cent recipients open messages.  Overall successful scams cost $3.1bilion yearly.

     

    Successful attacks

    According to Hewlett Packard (HP), phishing accounts for 83 per cent successful attacks while compromised accounts take 63 per cent; web-based attacks account for 54 per cent; client side attacks-43 per cent while the average cost of cybercrime is estimated to cost some $7.7million.

    According to the firm, it takes 146 days before a successful breach is detected while 84 per cent of breaches are against the application (app) layer.

     

    How to be safe online

    For consumers

    He said to be safe online, there is need to use anti-virus software, use strong passwords and change passwords frequently

    For security experts

    He urged security experts to keep the operating system and applications up-to-date; use multi-factor authentication; and use a password manager.

     

     Spotting a scam email

     

    When a mail is sent and it is requesting you to change your password; requesting for money; all caps in header, subject line, address or somewhere else prominent in email; “re” in an email that is not a response to another e-mail; messages from overseas, particularly anything from a country one has never visited; request for personal information and offer of a free gift, be careful because “There are no free gifts on the Internet.”

    He warned users to be careful of anything that says “click here,” particularly to see a video, picture or article or emails from a known person addressing you differently than they have before (for instance Emeka instead of Emma).

     

    Social media, new turf for crooks

     

    The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) warned members of the public to be wary about the information they share with strangers on social media platforms such as WhatsApp, Twitter, Facebook and others, adding that cybercrooks have now taken their nefarious games to these platforms.

    Lagos Public Relations Officer, Dolapo Badmus, a Superintendent of Police, who spoke at the forum, said the volume of cybercrimes committed via phishing, social engineering, spear phishing, malware, cyberbullying, identity theft and ransomware could no longer be matched with crimes committed through the various social media platforms.

    According to her, the male criminals’ modus operandi is opening an account on social media platforms with the image of a very pretty girl in need of a spouse. The unsuspecting man out there falls for the bait and money starts to flow.

    She said the NPF is equal to the task of dealing decisively with the criminals, adding that the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Kpotun Idris, has intensified efforts in this regard as he has committed to training and retraining officers and men of the force to counter the menace of criminals marauding in the cyberspace.

  • Mobile phones disrupt teaching, learning

    Mobile phones disrupt teaching, learning

    The liberalisation of the telecoms industry has brought mixed blessings. Fetters erected by distance have been demolished through voice calls or instant messaging, banking transactions now take place with just the press of buttons on smartphones’ keypads, while search engine online knowledge resource platforms such as Google and Wikipedia have had a defining impact. A new report in The Conversation shows that mobile phones have nonetheless disrupted teaching and learning, writes LUCAS AJANAKU.

    Mobile phones have become ubiquitous in Africa. Among younger users, basic phones are most common. But more pupils are accessing smartphones that can connect to the internet – and taking them along to school.

    Phones are often used in school whether the school authority allows it or not. Although they can enable valuable access to information, they also bring new responsibilities and dangers. It’s remarkably common for classes to be interrupted by both pupils’ and teachers’ phones. Access to pornography as well as bullying and harassment through phones is widely reported.

    A study of young people’s mobile phone use in Ghana, Malawi and South Africa emphasise the central place that mobile phones occupy in many young people’s lives. Before the mobile phone arrived in Africa, few people had access to landlines. In Nigeria, there were just about 40,000 analogue lines for about 120million population then.

    Phone ownership was a status symbol as the former state-run telco, Nigeria Telecommunications Limited (NITEL) and its latter mobile arm, dominated the space, stultifying development in the absence of a strong competitor. The story  changed with the liberalisation of the telecoms sector over 10 years ago. According to the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), total subscriber figure as at May, this year, stood at 148,848,158 while teledensity has risen to 106.32per cent.Telephone density or teledensity is the number of telephone connections for every hundred individuals living within an area. It varies widely across nations and also between urban and rural areas within a country.

    The mobile phone represents  far more of a communication revolution in Africa than in richer countries.

    However, worried by the harm uncontrolled access to mobile phones could do to learners, some private and public schools have outlawed mobile phone use in schools. States such as Osun, Akwa-Ibom, Jigawa have made policy statements banning phone use by students, while some private universities also do not allow phone use at all by students that are even considered adults.

    The study, which involved a group of university researchers from the United Kingdom (UK) and Africa, was funded by the UK’s Economic and Social Research Council and Department for International Development (DfID). It covers many aspects of young people’s phone use, from generational relations to job searches and health advice. Use in school has emerged as a leading issue, echoing concerns around the world.

    More than 1,500 face-to-face interviews were conducted with focus on groups with young people, teachers, parents and key community members across 24 locations – eight in each country. These varied from poor city neighbourhoods to remote rural hamlets.

    This was followed up with a questionnaire to about 3,000 young people aged between nine and 18 and 1,500 young people aged between 19 and 25 in the same 24 locations.

    The survey of children aged nine to 18 years shows that mobile phone use is much higher than ownership figures might suggest. Ownership of phones was lowest in Malawi, the poorest of the three countries. Here only eight per cent of children in the survey owned their own phone, compared with 16 per cent in Ghana and 51 per cent in South Africa. Nonetheless, in Malawi 35 per cent of children said they had used a phone in the week before the survey. In Ghana the figure was 42 per cent and in South Africa it was 77 per cent. Children often borrow phones from one  another, their parents, other family members and neighbours.

     

    Children’s use of phones

    Some pupils, particularly in South Africa, use their phones to access sites like Master Maths for help with homework. But the positive benefits mostly seem to be limited to mundane tasks such as contacting friends to check on homework or using the phone as a calculator. Much information from pupils and teachers was more negative: academic performance affected by disrupted classes – due to teachers as well as pupils using their phones – disrupted sleep because of cheap night calls, time wasted on prolonged sessions on social network sites, and harassment, bullying and pornography.

    Class disruption from pupils’ phones used to be mostly from ring tones when calls were received. Now, for those with smartphones, messaging on WhatsApp or checking Facebook have become common classroom activities. Teachers’ phone use in class can be equally disruptive, as some teachers admitted. A call comes in, or they make a call, and whether they step outside or take the call in class, the end result is that the lesson is interrupted and – as more than one told us – “You forget what you are going to deliver.”

    In Malawi, 60 per cent of enrolled pupils said they had seen their teacher using a phone in lesson time during the week before the survey. The corresponding figure for Ghana was 66 per cent and for South Africa 88 per cent. Pupils are rarely given such an opportunity to comment on the behaviour of those in authority over them but even if not all were truthful, these figures are of concern. Many head teachers also spoke about the problem of teacher phone use, saying they found it difficult to regulate.

    Other problems include disturbing levels of pupil bullying and harassment. In the survey of enrolled pupils who use a phone, 16 per cent in Ghana, 28 per cent in Malawi and 55 per cent in South Africa said they had received unwanted, unpleasant or upsetting calls or texts. This was almost equally true for boys and girls.

    Distribution and viewing of pornography is also widespread, as older boys were often willing to disclose. A few – even primary school pupils – mentioned sexting.

     

    Way forward

    Many head teachers have asked how to promote responsible phone use in school. Here, according to  the report, are some suggestions:

     

    Pupil’s phone use

    It is important to have a clear school policy on pupil phone use, to inform parents about this and to explain the reasoning behind it. If the school has decided to allow pupils to bring their mobile phone to school – for instance, because of travel problems – but not to use it in school, then pupils could be required to put a name tag on their phone and deposit it with a staff member, using a register, before school begins. In this case, parents or carers must be given a phone number for urgent messages.

    If the school allows pupils to use mobile phones in class as calculators or to access the internet, pupils and their parents could sign an “acceptable use” agreement each term. This would promote effective use of class time and their own and other pupils’ safety.

    Pupils also need reminders not to publish personal information on the internet and to tell their teacher, a parent or care giver if they access any information that worries them. Parents must be encouraged to help their child follow the school’s guidelines. Asking them to sign an acceptable use agreement together with their children will help.

     

    Teachers’ phone use

    Teachers’ mobile phones should be switched off and left in a safe place during lesson times. If teachers are using their phones when pupils are banned from doing so, pupils may become resentful. Workers should not contact pupils from their personal mobile phones or give their mobile phone numbers to pupils or parents. This would help teachers maintain sound professional practice.

     

  • ‘Mobile phones ‘ll boost inclusive banking ’

    ‘Mobile phones ‘ll boost inclusive banking ’

    You are transforming from a mortgage institution to a commercial bank. How has the journey been?

    We started our journey to becoming a commercial bank in 2009.  It’s been a very long process. This is the first commercial bank licence to be given since 2001. We were very clear that we needed to be involved in commercial banking so as to provide an alternative route to those in need of commercial banking. I have always seen Nigeria’s commercial banking sub-sector as one that has failed to transform itself and actually touch the lives of people. There is no way any society can develop or grow without having access to finance.  That’s very true.

    What is your thinking about Nigerian banks?

    Most of the commercial banks we have in the country, some over 100 years of existence, have some form of challenges.   And there are some powerful forces that are transforming this sub-sector. With the Bank Verification Number (BVN) that was done, it brought home the fact that the country is still under-banked.  We have just about 50 million accounts in the country based on statistics.  But roughly less than 30 million of those customers were verified.

    That tells you that in a country with a population of about 180 million, an annual population growth rate of about three per cent, certainly, it is clear that the country is heavily under-banked.  And if you look at it, the segment of those that are outside banking services are the group that is of young age that are virtually excluded. What that tells you is that there is a huge opportunity out there to actually provide services to these people and sell other products through those services.

    Are there other findings you made?

    We also realised that there are other locations of the country that really do not enjoy banking services and that, generally, informed, to a large extent, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN’s) drive for financial inclusion in which it is trying to ensure that people have access to financial services.

    For us, having realised that these forces will continue to shape the banking services, customer satisfaction must be high, technological advancement  must continue to evolve. We also believe that the regulatory environment is constantly changing and it is becoming tougher. These forces will continue to shape what happens in that sub-sector.

    What licence did you secure from the CBN?

    We have a regional licence for the Southsouth, Southwest and Abuja.  Next year we plan to have branches in the state capitals in these zones.  We chose these zones because that is where the money is so you follow the money first, that way you make returns and satisfy the general public by providing services.

    At a time when the industry is going through all these challenges, why are you coming in?

    The first reason is that customers are to a large extent dissatisfied and, secondly, there is no access to finance to most of the people who need it. The only institutions that will succeed at the end of the day, particularly between now and five years and thereafter are those that will constantly innovate using technology to drive financial services

    What are you bringing to the market that will mark you out? Why should anyone leave his bank and come and bank with you?

    For us we believe that two major issues are very key.  The first is the channels of distribution – what channels are we going to be using in order to provide banking services and what type of products are we bringing into the market.  First and foremost, we have decided that technology would be the biggest platform that will drive our business.  We will focus largely on the retail market.  We will be deepening the use of mobile phones as a means of access to banking services.  We are also a licensed Mobile Money Bank.

    So, in the real sense, we do not need a brick and mortar bank to provide banking services.  You can open your account on your phone and transact your business.

    Most of the unbanked members of the public are not comfortable going into those big commercial banks and that is why we believe that we will fill that gap.  Access to funds is difficult and most people will narrate their experiences while trying to get facilities from banks.   We plan to make it as easy as possible for people to have access to finance.  We will be there for those type of businesses.  We are going to follow the mass market and it will be driven by technology.

    Wherever you are, you do not need to get to the bank.  We will have our staff running around and opening the accounts for those who are not so literate.

    We will also be providing banking services to those areas where we believe the services do not get to and, therefore, we will be introducing bank-on-wheels towards the end of next quarter.  We will have vehicles that will drive round markets on market days and provide banking services for the next five years or so before we close that business.  We believe if we operate this it will go a long way.  We are also in collaboration with other financial services institutions so that a large majority will have access to financial service.  We believe the market is still fertile.

    The Treasury Single Account (TSA) implementation has shown that banks will not need to focus on government funds alone.

    This idea of bank-on-wheels, have you thought about the security implications?

    Yes we have.  We would have adequate security; but in any case, we are not going to be moving heavy funds around.  What we will be doing is bridge the gap for those customers who even lose money to thieves while in transit from their business places to the banks.  We want to relieve them of the burden – just a million or two or three would not be too much.

    Do you have the means to match the big banks in terms of resources and providing the technological base?

    A bank requires a minimum capital requirement, we have met that.  It will interest you to know that technology is not that very expensive; it depends on how you cut your cost and your bargaining ability.  The banking application that we have today is also operated by four other banks.  We got it cheapest.  And it is the same thing from the same source.

     Banks have been retrenching or rationalising lately.  Why not invest in ICT or agriculture or some other businesses?  Where others are having issues,  that is where you have decided to go into.  So what is the real interest?

    People build things based on their competences.  My competence has always been in finance and I have spent over 20years in the sector and I’m passionate about it.  You see young graduates with ideas but they do not have access to finance.  It is painful.  All over the world, economies are grown by small scale businesses because once small businesses are doing very well the economy will do very well too.  Those who are retrenched in banks are mostly those without access to finance who end up on contract jobs.  And again, banking services have been suffering because as you mentioned earlier, the issue of TSA – TSA was the most convenient way of making money because government money is lent to government at interests and then spread for profitability.  Meanwhile, some people are willing to work but they do not have access to finance.  Every investment carries risks.  You have to measure your risk and manage your business in a way that it provides the needed services and it is also profitable.

    Your board! Who are your backers.  And then there is this issue of the old ways of doing things: How do you plan or hope to contend with that?

    We have a nine-man board of directors. And if you go to the Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC, you will see who our shareholders are.  It is a privately owned company with about 12 shareholders, all private individuals; and a few other companies with stakes.  We also reserved some stakes for our staff because we believe our staff should also own part of the bank.  We need the energy of the youth and the wisdom of the old so it is not completely feasible to discard some old ways of doing things.

    What informed the name Sun Trust Bank Nigeria Limited?

    That’s always been a question many people ask.  Don’t forget that we were a mortgage financial institution before but two things we are very clear about.  First is that you need the energy of the Sun and to take it further, you need to trust that when the Sun sets, your money is safe and when the Sun rises in the morning, you have a bank to go to and which will be ready to serve you.

     

     

  • Anger as telcos bar customers from using mobile phones

    Anger as telcos bar customers from using mobile phones

    Many telephone subscribers were thrown into confusion yesterday as their telephone lines were barred from either making or receiving calls by their mobile network operators (MNOs).

    This is sequel to the expiration of the seven-day ultimatum handed down to the telcos by the regulator of the telecoms industry, the Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC) to deactivate subscriber identity modules (SIMs) registered irregularly by the operators.

    Its Director, Public Affairs, Tony Ojobo, in a statement had explained that the directive was the fallout of a meeting between Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), Department of State Service (DSS), MNOs and the NCC. The meeting which took place at the NCC boardroom in Abuja, took into cognisance crimes committed against members of the public either by kidnappers, terrorists, robbers and threats to lives, through the use of unregistered SIM cards across all the networks

    A young lady who simply identified herself as Bola said she was shocked when someone called her on her alternate line and said her operator told her that her number had been barred from receiving calls. She complained bitterly because, according to her, she was not given earlier notification about the development and had been using the line for more than one year.

    “I was shocked to discover that I could neither make nor receive calls on my phone number. I feel my MNO was not polite enough on this matter because I am supposed to have been advised accordingly if they had discovered anything irregular in the biometric data I supplied during the process of registering my SIM card. Now I am confused because I don’t know what to do because when I visited the office of my service provider this morning, it was filled to capacity,” she said, adding that she was advised to do another registration with the agents along the road for which she paid N100 and have since not been reactivated.

    A young man who gave his name simply as Chukwudi who sells motor spare parts in Ladipo Market, Lagos said his wife travelled to the Aba yesterday and was monitoring her movement on phone till she got to Asaba, adding that her number was snapped out of the network.

    “In a country where there are no good roads and insecurity is all time high, especially armed robbery on the highway and kidnapping, the mobile phone has become the only tool through which one could get monitor one’s family members on transit. So, it is very disheartening that my wife was removed from the network abruptly without any notification. It is bad and demonstrated lack of respect for the customer,” he said.

    He was particularly bitter that if the MNOs wanted to sell their services, they will call their customers or send unsolicited text messages to harass them, adding that when it came to the issue of irregular SIM registration, they just went ahead to rudely cut them off the network.

    Bola and Chukwudi are but few examples of many customers that may have been cut off the network unnotified contrary to the directive of the NCC.

    Director, Corporate Communications and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Airtel Nigeria, Emeka Oparah said the telco is complying with the directive of the NCC, insisting that it issued a press statement to that effect in the newspapers on Monday. He added that SIM registration has been on wondering why customers should wait this long.

  • Why mobile phones are useful to Students

    Why mobile phones are useful to Students

    Mobile phones are one of the fastest adopted innovations in the history. Today, findings have revealed that computer, internet and mobile phones have become important parts of human life and that the latest of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), mobile phones, have become widespread in most parts of the world, especially among the young generation.

    Statistically, young people constitute a greater percentage of mobile phone users in the world.

    The integral roles play by mobile phones in the life of students, especially undergraduate students cannot be underscored. Mobile phones enhance students’ urge for communication which include sending and receiving of text messages and making and receiving of phone calls to parents, guardians and love ones.

    It’s when majority of students are wondering when their roommates will be back to the room, whether they are given assignments or there is a fixed class and other odd moments that they find a good time to pick up their phones to text or call. But sure bet of all students do with their phones is chatting. Students chat very well even if they don’t have anything informative to exchange at that moment.

    In Journalism and mass communication for instance, mobile phones are used as portable (pocket) media devices and services. With internet enabled phones like Smartphones, students can know what is happening around the world and can make happenings around them known worldwide within seconds. Mass communication students can equally convert their sophisticated phones to recording audio and audio-visual gadgets. They package, write and report events as they are.

    Generally speaking, with mobile phones, students can access online materials related to their area of disciplines. They can browse for other informative, fascinating and tantalizing sites, events, programmes, social-cultural and religiously inclined stuffs and watch videos both online and offline with them.
    In other words, students can surf the Net with their Internet enabled mobile phones. Across the board, students with Smartphones can use social media Apps which include Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp, 2go, Badoo, Tumbir among others. This is so because Social Network Site owners have tailored their offerings to fit mobile crowds.

    With features like location, tagging, picture upload, personal profile update and status updates, students can use their phone to broadcast who they are, where they are and what they are doing to all their friends and the entire public or users of a social networking site they can access at any
    point in time.

    To this end, students can easily get carried away in the euphoria of using these mobile phones and if care is not taken, they can be detrimental to student’s academic pursuits. Students are therefore charged to be an active audience of this new technology through purposeful use of their mobile devices and not letting these devices and other technologies use them.

    Oyewole writes from ABU, Zaria