The Nation Newspaper

Tag: technology

  • Obaseki banks on Technology, synergy with private sector

    The Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has said that the state government will drive agribusiness investments in the state with the deployment of new technologies and strong participation of private investors.

    Obaseki said this in a chat with journalists after a meeting with the Director General (DG) of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Dr. Nteranya Sanginga, on the sidelines of the International Workshop Water-Energy-Food Systems in Sub-Sahara, held at the IITA campus in Ibadan, Oyo State.

    He said, “The most important of the challenges is trying to reenact and reestablish the culture of agriculture, to take out the drudgery of the past and bring in science and technology. We want to look at agriculture as a business with its value chain. People don’t grow crops for its own sake, it is because it has several uses aside food, such as agro-processing and as industrial goods.

    Read Also:How Obaseki leverages World Bank partnership to transform Edo

    “As a governor, I am here to see how I can explore opportunities with the institute, which we are very proud of. In the last 50 years, they have been helping us to understand the crops we grow in the tropics. We are also here to see how we can go into partnerships and work on specific projects.

    Noting that the state is paving the way for private investors to contribute in deepening investment in agribusiness, he said, “In Edo State, for instance, we have shut down all the colleges of agriculture and are restarting them with new curriculum. We are getting the private sector to get involved, even in those schools, to train the required manpower.”

    According to him, “For us as politicians and as a government, I campaigned and promised that I was going to enhance the well-being of my people and that I was going to create jobs. That is from a political perspective, I made a promise and I have to deliver. There are a number of things I need to do to deliver the result.  The first thing is to identify the issues, challenges and problems. But more importantly, you have to get and mobilise resources to make that happen.

    He restated that Edo State is one of the foremost agricultural states in Nigeria, as it has some of the biggest investments in oil palm and rubber plantations in the country, assuring that he was intent on returning the state to its glorious days as an agribusiness hub.

    He said, “Don’t forget that before oil became a fad, we were firstly an agrarian country. Edo State was the largest producer of oil palm and therefore we had the oil palm research institute. We were also a major producer of rubber. When I mean producer, I mean global producer of things like rubber, so we had a rubber research institute 60 years ago in Benin. So, we have had a culture of agriculture and agribusiness.”

     

  • Yabatech acquires software for detecting plagiarism

    The Governing Council of Yaba College of Technology (Yabatech) on Wednesday said it had acquired a world-class security software capable of detecting any act of plagiarism in write-ups submitted by students and lecturers.

    Mr Lateef Fagbemi, Chairman, Governing Council of the college stated this at the 11th International Science, Technology, Education, Arts, Management and Social Sciences (iSTEAMS) Conference in Lagos.

    Fagbemi spoke on “Plagiarism and Its Legal Implications Within Academic Environments: Consequences On The Institutions And Offender”.

    The three-day conference organised by the Research Nexus Africa Network, in collaboration with the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics, ends on June 29.

    Fagbemi said the software would detect the slightest act of plagiarism and copyright.

    According to him, with the software, the college is confident that products, are now better secured and their final works, much more reassuring.

    He said the conference was apt as it brings to the front burner, the unfortunate situation of plagiarism.

    “Educational institutions must step up the quality control mechanisms and academic papers submitted by writers must be thoroughly checked to detect a possibility of plagiarism.

    “Yabatech has now acquired world-class security software that can detect even the slightest act of plagiarism in write-ups submitted by our students and lecturers.

    “This is where the deployment of technology comes in.

    “Relevant software must be acquired by our institutions to detect any possible case of plagiarism and be able to nip it in the bud,’’ he said.

    Fagbemi further remarked that plagiarism was prevalent, not only in tertiary institutions but also in science, journalism, literature, film creation and other areas.

    He said that in the academic and intellectual industry, plagiarism was a serious ethical offence.

    According to him, plagiarism cases could be detected even in works of famous writers, songs, filmmakers, philosopher, scientist, and public workers, among others.

    “Plagiarism is not in itself a crime, but can constitute copyright infringement.’’

    Fagbemi recommended that institutions must step-up the quality control mechanisms, while government must set up legislative intervention in curbing the problem of plagiarism.

    “ Our laws must be re-jigged to cater for the menace as a specific problem.

    “A specific problem deserves a special and deliberate solution.

    “The legislature must promulgate laws that specifically and pointedly address plagiarism, and all its variance, taking it away from the adaptation of the copyright laws, under which it is currently treated.’’

    Also speaking, Dr Obafemi Bank-Olemoh, Leadership/Business Intelligence expert at Caleb Business School, Lagos urged the Federal Government to develop the human resource capital to achieve industrialisation.

    Bank-Olemoh said the three tiers of government needed to re-access and reinforce the implementation of Technical and Vocational Education (TVE) policies.

    He spoke in a paper titled: “Nigeria’s Industrialisation Drive cannot succeed if not anchored on the Investment and Development of Human Resource Capital; particularly on Technical Vocational Education (TVE)”.

    He said the success of Free Trade Zones hinged on addressing infrastructure deficit by appropriate funding.

    He noted that sustainability of Nigerian Industrial Zones could not be achieved if the expatriate quota abuse is not controlled.

    According to him, the integration system pathway should be adopted to bring together TVE curriculum, academic and applied curriculum, the labour market demands, institutions and the society at large.

    “The focus now should be on the development of a viable natural system of a vocational and technical education programme that will have easy access and exit learning pathways.

    “It must be validated by accredited learning that will lead to work or continued progress along another learning pathway.

    “This will help ginger youths and adults to see TVE as challenging and worthwhile,’’ he said.

    Mr Obafemi Omokungbe, Rector, Yabatech commended iSTEAMS for organising the conference and urged participants to be active in all sessions.

  • Technology exhibition holds July 14

    TEXPO Technology Exhibition, in conjunction with Purple Chip, is set to stage this year’s technology exhibition.

    A statement by its coordinator, Mr Adetolani Eko, explained that the forum will hold on Saturday, July 14, at LCCI Conference & Exhibition Centre in Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos with: “Driving affordable and sustainable innovation” as its theme.

    He said  it is a yearly event aimed at encouraging young and innovative technology entrepreneurs in Nigeria and Africa as a force to reckon with in the global technology market.

    According to him, the forum will give stakeholders in the tech ecosystem an opportunity to interact and showcase their products before industry influencers, exhibitors and potential investors.

    “TEXPO presents an opportunity for technology entrepreneurs to find investors and mentors for them and their products, provide a platform for start-ups to exhibit their products, create an avenue for start-ups to get funding, provide an avenue for entrepreneurs to interact, help start-ups receive feedback on their products before it hits the market, sensitise youth and recalibrate their thought process  as well as motivate and inspire young technology entrepreneurs and tech enthusiasts,” he said.

    He said TEXPO aims to be different from other tech exhibitions through having experienced, and passionate keynote speakers who also aimed at creating platforms where stakeholders in various aspects of technology, such as hardware, software, artificial intelligence (AI) technologies among others can exhibit their products, get feedback and advice from industry experts and find potential investors.

  • Technology: Ikpeazu urges Africans to look inwards

    The Governor of Abia State, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu, has called on African countries to take advantage of the available technological platforms to adapt home grown innovation and solutions to resolve the socio-economic challenges facing the continent at the moment.

    Ikpeazu delivering a speech, Accelerating Digital Governance at the 4th edition of Transform Africa Summit, holding in Kigali Convention Centre, Kigali, Rwanda stated that African states must tag along in the global technology journey and by collaborating with each other. This is as he noted that technology has too many advantages for any sane leader or society to ignore.

    Abia governor who used the occasion to share Abia’s experience and breakthrough in using technology to facilitate efficient governance, resource mobilisation and management also highlighted the efforts of his administration in using technology to solve everyday challenges in the state especially in the health sector.

    “Universal health coverage is one of the bane of Africa societies, leveraging existing technology and the huge teledensity in Nigeria; we have built a platform for digital tele-health system known as dial-a-doc-direct project. This project links all the 292 ward PHCs in our rural communities to a medical call centre where e-consulting, e-diagnosis, e-prescription and e-referral system has shortened the response and service delivery time and cost.”

    Major government and private sector leaders including President Paul Kagame, Chairman of AU Commission, President of the United Nations General Assembly, Houlin Zhao Secretary General International Telecommunication, Rob Shutter Group President & CEO MTN, Strive Masiyiwa Founder and Chairman Econet Wireless are attending the event. Others include more than 33 Ministers from different countries, members of the diplomatic community and Heads of multinational institutions.

  • ‘Technology cannot take teachers’ place’

    With technological advancements in Artificial intelligence, mixed reality, quantum computing, 3D printing and others disrupting what is work and learning globally, Microsoft Vice President, Worldwide Education, Anthony Salcito, has called for changes in mindsets that would allow educators prepare learners for jobs of the future.

    Speaking at the opening of the two-day BETT Middle East and Africa Leadership conference and exhibition held at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC), Abu Dhabi Monday, Salcito said kindergartners who would graduate by 2030 needed a different kind of education from what is presently on offer.

    Based on a research by Microsoft and McKinsey on “Preparing the Class of 2030”, the technology expert said their education needed to be more personalised and teach more soft and emotional skills.

    In doing this, Salcito said technology becomes an enabler that would, rather than take teachers’ place, strengthen them to learn more about their students and as a result give them education tailored to their needs.

    He said teachers needed to realise that technology could not take their place but could make them more productive in preparing their learners to excel in a world where the skill sets needed were presently unknown.

    He said such education should infuse passion in the learners.

    “The reality of why Artificial Intelligence is often feared is because of the displacement of jobs. In many ways it is going to create potential to improve existing jobs – potential to help students get better by providing teachers with tools to assist their jobs,” he said.

    In his speech, the Minister of Education at the United Arab Emirates, H.E. Hussain Ibrahim So, said his country was preparing hard to equip its citizens with the right kind of skills by evolving policies and establishing schools where innovative learning takes place.

    “UAE is the first to have a specialist for the fourth industrial revolution to create policies and laws. We need high quality education to enable our children for the future.

    “We were very proactive in the UAE and launched smart learning in 125 schools. We are planning to launch in 700 schools,” he said.

    In an interview with The Nation, the Story Adviser to Gov Abiola Ajimobi, on education, Dr BC Akin-Alabi said the Oyo State was ready to embrace the transformation technology brings.

    She said the government was partnering with Microsoft to make basic and advanced digital literacy curriculum available in all schools, public or private, at all levels.

  • SystemSpecs: technology has blocked financial haemorrhage

    SystemSpecs Executive Director/Chief Technology Officer Dr. Emmanuel Eze has said the application of technology to the collection of Federal Government revenue has stopped leakages and further haemorrhaging of the economy.

    Eze, who spoke on the sideline of the president’s dinner of the Institute of Software Practitioners of Nigeria (ISPON) in Lagos, said the software, Remitta, on which the Treasury Single Account (TSA) of the Federal Government has engendered transparency within the government space.

    He said: “Definitely, it’s been widely acclaimed that TSA has really helped the country in terms of managing leakages and all the things that happen when you don’t have that kind of software; it has equally helped to engender transparency within the government space especially with regard to payments and what goes on with payment generally within government. And in recognition of that, a number of other countries within Africa are trying to do something similar; so they are trying to learn from Nigeria so we’ve really done great here in Nigeria by implementing TSA.”

    Speaking on how the youth could be encouraged early in life to embrace coding and software writing, Eze said education is key, adding that the youths must be exposed to coding early enough.

    He said: “Education is key; they need to learn how to code and I’m happy with what Lagos State government is doing with CODELagos and we equally support that as a company as well. The whole idea these days is to catch them young and get the ones to start learning early enough and the moment they learn, software is what rules the world. You talk about technology, but without software which is the real thing that powers these devices, you don’t have anything so if you have the young ones learning early enough, starting off young by the time they get to their teenage or in their early 20s, they will begin to do wonders and that’s my wish for most of the young ones.”

  • AXA Mansard: technology has redefined business

    Mobile technology has redefined business by impacting the daily routine of millions of Nigerians, influencing how they receive information,  AXA Mansard Insurance Plc, has said.

    Its Chief Digital Officer, Mr. Bayo Adesanya, who spoke in Lagos at the weekend during the unveiling of a mobile application (app) in the non-banking financial services industry called MyAXA mobile app, said the population of mobile phone users in the country keeps growing, adding that organisations are increasingly leveraging it to deliver services.

    Adesanya said:  “Mobile technology has changed the daily routine of millions of Nigerians by significantly influencing how they receive information. The population of mobile phone users in the country keeps growing so organisations are increasingly leveraging this trend by creating platforms where consumers manage their product plans on the go.

    “MyAXA app enables subscribers to perform various activities which include purchase of insurance packages; real time claims initiation and tracking; locating hospitals and ordering prescription refills.”

    AXA Mansard is a member of the AXA Group, a global leader in insurance and asset management.

    He said the app is designed to bring real value to the life experiences of its users by providing a more convenient way to purchase and manage their AXA Mansard product plans.

    “The app is secure, all payment information is strictly confidential and global security standards have been employed to protect users’ information,” he said.

    According to him, the app is a unique improvement from other apps as subscribers can carry out transactions, buy products and book hospital appointments whenever they want.

    The app is designed for iPhone and Android devices and is available for free download on the App Store for IOS users and Play Store for Android users respectively.

    Other possibilities on the app include making contribution to funds; liquidating investments as well as checking balances on Retirement Savings Accounts (RSAs).

     

  • ‘Technology, key driver in national development’

    The Lagos State Commissioner for Environment, Babatunde Durosimi -Et:ti, has said that science and technology play a critical role in any nation’s development and her economic prosperity. To ignore Science, he said, is to ignore development. He spoke at the 52nd Annual Conference of the Science Association of Nigeria (SAN), at Adeyemi Bero Hall in Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos.

    “In the 21st century, developments in science and technology are fundamentally altering the way people live, connect, communicate, and transact business with profound effects on economic development. Technological and scientific revolutions underpin economic advances, improvements in health systems, education and infrastructure,” the commissioner said.

    He noted that access to, and application of science and technology are differentiators between nations that are able to tackle poverty effectively by growing and developing their economies, and those that are not able to.

    “The extent to which developing economies emerge as economic powerhouses depends on their ability to grasp and apply insights from scientific innovations. As an engine of growth, the potential of science is endless, and still untapped in Africa. This is why we strongly believe that this conference will create an interface between policymakers and science practitioners which would help in bringing the gap and assist in tapping into the wealth of scientific knowledge available in the nation and across the globe.”

  • ‘Technology key to Nigeria’s security challenges’

    The Chief Executive Officer, Hamgad Security Services, Hammed Ibrahim has said the deployment of technology would help address the country’s security challenges.

    He said in modern warfare, technology does the ground work which human beings complete.

    Speaking on the sideline of inaugurating the firm’s new outlet in The Palms, Lekki, Lagos, he said technology has helped to prevent the commission of crimes and  helped to identify and unknot serious security challenge.

    “If we look at the advanced countries right now, they don’t use manpower to fight security challenges, rather they invest a lot in electronic security. So that is what we are now introducing to Nigeria because a lot of people go and get a recruit security guards and things like that to secure their homes and businesses when we have electronic devices that can do the job better. We have security equipment with battery power, because of our peculiar electricity challenges. These are battery-powered equipment that when you are not at home you know what is going on in your house. If you even want to open the door of your house, you can do that from your phone. There are other different gadgets which are battery-powered that can be used to secure yourself, your home and your business,” he said.

    He said the public sector has realised the place of technology in fighting crimes and putting in place, a secured environment for businesses to thrive.

    “To be honest, the government is increasingly realising the place of technology. We have a lot of partners in different agencies and they are adopting the culture because they have realised that if anything happens, they don’t necessarily have to go there before they can get the information they need because there are equipment that they can put in strategic places and will get collate all the information they need that will facilitate the delivery of their jobs,” he said.

    According to him, contrary to the believe that funding is the major challenge of businesses in the country, the major problem is identifying the customers. He said identifying the customers is the most important thing because going to a place where they don’t need what is sold could be frustrating.

    He commended the Federal Government for taking steps that have led to relative stability in the foreign exchange (forex) space. He said: “Like every other business that operates at the international space, forex affected us two years ago but the thing about Nigerians is we always adapt. We started bringing in product that customers actually need, that they request for so that means we don’t go and buy things that they don’t need and just keep them in the shop for display. So that’s why with the exchange rate we let them know what the challenges are and when they are willing to get it, we get it for them.’’

    He said the vision of Hamgad is to be the destination for security, safety equipment in the country. “With Hamgad, we are diversifying security to make sure that we capture the entire market space in Nigeria. We all understand that security is a huge challenge in Nigeria and that created a vacuum for us to come in and basically focus on the sale aspect which is an immediate solution to people whereby they can use the likes of security safety cameras and others,” he added.

  • Technology and future of real estate practice

    SIR: Global outlook generally is that 21st century is going to be driven largely by technological changes. Nobody ever thought 20 years ago for instance that someday there will be something called electric and chargeable cars that will suddenly eliminate the use of fuel and driver. The world is fast changing and very rapidly for that matter; the old order is fast crumbling and new ones are equally emerging fast.

    Across the world, companies, organizations and even governments respond to the rapidly evolving technology by creating new business and operating models for unmanned aerial vehicles, otherwise known as Drones which get things done without any physical presence.

    Further technological push without doubt will produce a range of new technologies with impacting influence and effects on all disciplines, physical, digital and biological worlds, and the entire world of business would be further revolutionized. At the moment, technological advances are creating disruptive changes to society at large, especially on the issue of employment, with increased automation, advanced robotics and artificial intelligence putting large numbers of job categories under pressure of disappearance, going from lower skill jobs such as drivers, secretarial and office administration to middle skill jobs such as legal and financial services. Such disruption will affect not only the lower working class but also the middle class that have lived under the tenet that higher education and confirmation to social norms would lead to personal prosperity.

    It is definite that technological progress will affect both the demand and the requirements on real estate but with different impacts on different types of real estate.

    Offices would most likely face a new group of tenants in the foreseeable future, while job functions with more physical attributes or lower social/cognitive requirements are likely to be automated, with digitalization, increased office automation, shared platforms and collaborative works encourage resources sharing and development of shared workspace providers.

    This describes the direction the world, particularly the developed world have charted for efficient service delivery, real estate service inclusive. Suffice to say that we are not moving at the same technological pace with the western economies.

    Agreed, the advent of the Internet and social media has boosted the avenues through which we interact with clients, enabling us to connect more effectively with those whose lifestyles are suited for those platforms. It has also enabled us expand our reach faster. Courtesy of technological advancement, the industry has been transformed in many ways. Online digital marketing platforms such as mobile apps, websites, blogs, and chat rooms are some of the game changing advances enabling more people to access and compare real estate options in a way that was previously not available locally. These platforms ensures the liberalization of the industry and remove a lot of layers, especially for the entry to mid-level, already built properties, which may not require as much expertise. Even new developments are benefitting by providing convenient online pre-viewings and significant progress before relationship human interactions are required.

    But the main challenges to the growth of the sector in Nigeria still stare us in the face. Challenges such as comprehensive, accurate, reliable and readily available data, with the accompanying challenges of significant delays in processing building approvals; timelines for registering titles and legal enforcement; lack of transparency; restrictions to legal title; and high cost of acquisition of real estate including financing costs, registration costs and service fees.

    These challenges are surmountable and must be redressed with scientific inclination. We must build verifiable data for strategic real estate decisions, in addition to providing valuable advisory services to serious investors and developers to enable them make fact-based, intelligent decisions that ultimately improve their profitability. This has become one of the fastest growing parts of our business. These should be one of the core services implementation of real estate practices. Should we fail to do that, we would not make the essential impact in the industry.

     

    • Ewenla Mustapha  ANIVS, RSV, MNIM

    Lagos.