The Nation Newspaper

Tag: vital

  • ‘Partnership vital to broadband’s realisation’

    Partnership and strategic collaboration are key to the realisation of Federal Government’s National Broadband Policy (NBP), the United States (U.S.) and Backbone Connectivity Network (BCN) Limited of Nigeria have said.

    The U.S, through the United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), is partnering  BCN to bridge broadband access gaps in the country, touching on how cost-effective technology and infrastructure can be deployed to accelerate and surpass the 30 per cent target set in the NBP.

    The deal was unveiled at a reception in Lagos in honour of participants of the November 2017 USTDA Reverse Trade Mission, by US Consul-General F. John Bray and visiting USTDA Country Manager for Nigeria, Ms. Shannon M. Roe.

    USTDA said the award of a USTDA-funded grant to BCN was  for the development of a feasibility study and business plan to support the deployment of a broadband fiber network across the Northwest region, including the building of a Tier III data centre in Kaduna State.

    BCN’s CEO, Mr. Ibrahim Dikko, expressed gratitude to the USTDA team for the support and stated that it was timely as it coincided with BCN’s corporate and broadband infrastructure network expansion and deepening of its product and services portfolio.

    The feasibility study and business plan being funded by USTDA would cover the assessment of the BCN-led Consortium’s plan to build about 10,000 km of fibre linking about 500 Points of Access (PoA) across the local government areas in the seven Northwestern States integrated with the Tier III Data and Co-location Centre deployment plan for Kaduna.This is in furtherance of the National Broadband Plan to increase broadband access in Nigeria from its present 22 per cent to over 30 per cent by end 2018.

    BCN is a leading unified data communication service provider that operates a metropolitan broadband network in Abuja and has deployed over 1,000 km of fiber in Northcentral and Northeastern Nigeria. BCN has a National Long-Distance Operator License, a National Metropolitan Operator License and an Internet Service Provider Licence, allowing it to provide client centric data management solutions. BCN provides high capacity scalable internet bandwidth, carrier connectivity services, MPLS solutions to enterprises, data center colocation, cloud-based services and tailor-made data management solutions to clients across the country.

    BCN is the lead in the consortium recently awarded Infraco licence for Northwest Nigeria by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to build fibre broadband infrastructure across the seven Northwest states of; Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto and Zamfara.

    BCN was also selected by the Kaduna State government to build fibre metropolitan broadband communications networks in the three key economic zones of Kaduna, Zaria and Kafanchan, including Northern Nigeria’s first Tier III Data and Co-location Centre in Kaduna town.

    Dikko further reiterated BCN’s commitment to its partnership with USTDA in promoting increased broadband network footprint and Internet penetration in Nigeria for improved socio-economic development across Northern Nigeria in particular and Nigeria in general.

  • Consistency is vital for Pillars, says Aloma

    Consistency is vital for Pillars, says Aloma

    Idris Aloma believes that consistency in the second round of the Nigerian topflight will be vital in reviving Kano Pillars’ season.

    “As you can see we are sweating it out in training, everyone knows what’s at stake and working hard to be ready,” Aloma told Goal.

    “Like I have always said, I am a champion and anywhere I find myself I give my best. The Kano Pillars  squad is a fantastic one and we are going for the real deal. We aren’t under any sort of pressure but we are determined to perform and make the fans happy again.

    “The start of a league is important but it really doesn’t matter, what matters most is the consistency through the 38 matches we shall play. We have played 19 and have 19 more matches to go so there’s still an equal opportunity for all the teams and the difference at the and of the season will be those who took their chances and those who failed to take their chances,” he said.

  • ‘Why energy mix is vital’

    The Federal Government should use  energy mix, such as solar, biomass, and coal, to generate electricity to meet the  people’s energy needs, a former Special Assistant on Renewable Energy to the former Minister of Power, Dr Albert Okorogu, has said.

    In an interview, he said the government was relying on gas and hydro power, the two major on-grid means of generating electricity, to the detriment of solar, biomass, coal, and others, which could be wheeled on or off-grid.

    He said energy mix is what the country needs to provide sufficient and sustainable electricity for its people.

    Okorogu said: “While stakeholders, including the Federal Government, are providing on-grid  electricity for the people that are living in the urban areas, they should endeavour to make off-grid electricity available to the  rural areas, since they consume less power. Globally, industrial areas consume more energy than those in the rural areas. This is the reason  stakeholders are advocating for increased investment in solar and other renewable energies in the hinterlands.

    “There exists abundant resources for provision of on-grid and off-grid  electricity. Are we to talk of natural gas for domestic consumption and export? Are we to talk of water, solar, biomass, coal, which are natural endowments? They are too many to mention.”

    He said the country has enough gas for power generation and domestic purposes apart from the huge earnings, derived from exporting gas. According to him, countries, such as China and South Africa, generate huge volume of electricity because they combine various sources of providing power together.

    He said South Africa produces 40,000 megawatts (Mw) for its less than 50million population, while power generation is higher than that of China’s. The development, Okorogu said, had resulted in stable electricity in the two countries, urging Nigeria to toe similar path.

    He said the country’s generation has hovered between 3,000Mw and 5,000Mw for more than two decades, stressing that the country would have produced more megawatts if it had adopted energy mix to generate electricity early enough.

  • ‘Mechanisation vital to agricbusiness’

    ‘Mechanisation vital to agricbusiness’

    To  boost agriculture, small farmers should embrace mechanisation, say experts. DANIEL ESSIET reports.

    Although agricultural mechanisation helps to improve productivity and profits of small-scale farmers, many are yet to embrace emerging farming technologies and machinery.

    Factors, such as the high cost of machines and farmers’ lack of access to finance, make the machinery unaffordable for resource-poor farmers.

    Despite these, some farmers are calling for a change. One of them is Debo Thomas, a large  scale  farmer in Ogbomosho, Oyo State. His community has a strong agricultural tradition – nearly two-thirds of its population are farmers.

    Though he uses agricultural machinery to plant and harvest crops, he is among those canvassing the introduction of cheap, easy-to-operate and easy-to-maintain tractors  that  can be fitted to a various innovative auxiliary equipment for planting, threshing and irrigation.

    According to him, tractors and other high tech machinery are often difficult to get in the  area.

    To achieve increased production, he  believes the governments, farmers, and policy makers should work together to make mechanisation a priority. If done well, he said mechanised agriculture will be a springboard to lift people out of poverty, relieve the burden of hunger for many, and increase the quality of life for the most vulnerable rural poor.

    For Country Manager of Dizengoff Nigeria, Mr. Antti Ritvonen, tractors increase farm efficiency and create greater prosperity for farmers.

    According to him, with quicker planting and harvesting and reduced harvest losses, the tractor allows farmers to plant and harvest more crops yearly.  He said it makes seeding and harvesting easier and more accurate, increasing yields.

    To this end, he  said tractors provided by his organisation are distributed in most part of the Southwest where farmers grow crops in large scale farms.

    The only challenge in the business is slow adoption of mechanised farming.To improve the situation, Dizengoff Nigeria announced an international partnership with CASE IH, a global leader in agricultural equipmentmanufacturing.

    Ritvonen  said: “We are very excited to be partnering Case IH in the area of providing quality tractors to Nigerian farmers, as we intend to improve farming substantially as well as revolutionise the agricultural sector through mechanisation.”

    Accoding to him, for Nigeria to achieve self-sufficiency in food production, farmers need to embrace mechanisation in their farming. He said many farmers in the country still depend on hand tools, such as hoes and cutlasses, which are time consuming, laborious and inefficient.

    He added: “We believe this partnership is very important to farmers, as it will impact positively on their production. We are committed to selling the most reliable and productive agricultural equipment solutions available.”

    Tractor and Implement Commercial Manager, Mr. Damisa Enahoro, said: “Without doubt, mechanisation is the solution every farmer will need to improve production and eliminate loss of time. Nigeria has the potential of becoming the food basket of Africa, and mechanisation is key to achieving it. This will invariably stimulate the overall economy of Nigeria.”

    Damisa explained that the deal would enable Dizengoff to get all its technicians and service team trained by CASE IH to provide a robust after-sales support to its customers.

    Case IH is a global player reputed for productive agricultural equipment and leadership, innovation and reliability, built since it was founded in 1842 in Racine, United States.

    Through the deal with CASE IH, Dizengoff sells and supports its range of tractors, including the JX and JXT Series of all- purpose machines.

  • Quality diagnosis vital, say experts

    PathCare Laboratories Executive Director, Operations, Dr Tolulope Adewole, has stressed the need for quality diagnosis in laboratory analysis.

    At a seminar by the firm in Lagos, he said any life lost to misdiagnosis is avoidable, describing it as injustice to the patient, his family and friends.

    “Evidence-based medicine is hinged on obtaining an empirical evidence of a diagnosis before administering the appropriate treatment. All over the world, the bedrock of laboratory medicine is quality and its processes. For this, it is important that the entire value chain is covered,” he added.

    In her paper titled: “Quality as the differentiator,”the lead facilitator, Janette Wassung, an assessor and former head, Quality Management of PathCare South Africa, said quality is a big global medical issue as it affects the overall health status of the world.

    She said quality diagnosis runs thus: pre-analytical, analytical and post-analytical stages.

    Her words: “These stages cover the collection, transportation and reception of samples; reagents and instruments used and personnel who conduct the test; as well as the result format, international unit of measurement used and the pathologists that interpret the results.”

    She noted that the cost of deploying a good quality management system (QMS) may look huge initially but this cost would amount to almost nothing compared to the cost that labs would have to bear in case of a misdiagnosis.

    She called on labs practitioners to institute a good QMS to avoid the costs that could come from a lack of good quality management system.

    For Wassung,”misdiagnosis, the major fallout of a lack of QMS, leads to a number of unpalatable circumstances including death, unnecessary and elongated treatment and the attendant high cost. It could also result in lengthy and costly litigation for the laboratory.”

    On the need for a good QMS, she told a story. In another lab, a mother of two who was diagnosed with neuroendocrine cancer at 34 and was told she only had months to live underwent five surgeries to excise a cyst from her gum, remove lower jaw and teeth and face reconstruction with bone taken from her lower leg.

    Later, this woman, Wassung lamented, was shocked to hear that she never had cancer in the first place. The slides from the biopsy of the cyst that was taken from her was contaminated by cells from another patient which led to a misdiagnosis.

  • Mikel: Away goal at PSG vital

    Mikel: Away goal at PSG vital

    John Obi Mikel believes his first half strike will prove priceless in Chelsea’s Champions League last-16 second leg clash against PSG.

    Zlatan Ibrahimovic opened the scoring for the hosts before Mikel levelled right on half-time but Laurent Blanc’s side piled on the pressure and were rewarded late on with Edinson Cavani’s winner.

    “My goal is a big one. I think it’s going to prove a big goal hopefully. It will be a goal that will keep us in the tie and hopefully it will put us through in the tie. If we get one nil back home, we will be through. I think we are still alive,” Mikel told Chelsea TV.

    However, the Super Eagles star feels his team did well and deserved at least a draw from the Parc des Princes.

    “We came out here to play the game of football and we’ve done that. I think we put on a very good performance,” he continued.

    “We defended when we had to and played when we had to. It was a very difficult game but it was one that we did well. It was a fair result but I think we deserve more. We deserve a draw or win the game.

    “It’s our first loss under the new manager but we’re not out of the tie yet, we’ve still got the second leg to play and hopefully we can build on the goal we have. When we play at home we need to make sure we get a good result and go through,” he concluded.

  • ‘Banks’ support vital for economic growth’

    Any country that strives for development must have the support of banks and entrepreneurs, the Chief Executive Officer, Vertrag International Limited, Olubunmi Oluwadare, has said.

    Speaking with our reporter in Lagos, he said banks must support Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) because it is the engine room of every economy.

    He said in countries such as China, India and Turkey, banks support the private sector, lamenting that the challenge of entrepreneurship in Nigeria is the banks.

    “Banks should invest in entrepreneurs as it is better to have 10,000 entrepreneurs bringing money into the banks than to have an individual’s money,” he said.

    He lamented that banks have consistently seen SMEs as a risk factor, noting that every business is a risk. “What the bank needs to do is to create a department to handle these entrepreneurs; when the entrepreneurs come to the banks for partnership, the banks should not just give them the funds, but should be part of the business from the beginning to ensure that the business thrives and their money recovered.

    “Government can handle infrastructure but they cannot do business because they are not a good manager of business. Government cannot create jobs alone; it is entrepreneurs that create jobs. If entrepreneurs are provided with funds and are able to create jobs, jobless people will reduce,” he said.

    He, therefore, urged the banking sector to look inwards, focus on entrepreneurs, and not on the people that steal government money or the people that get funding because they have collateral facility but may never pay back.

    He said it is better to have few functional banks than to have many banks that are undermining banking functions.

    “Now there is problem everywhere; the economy is not in good shape. The banks should sit down and see how they can channel the cash in their custody to build entrepreneurs. Every business is a risk and when you can’t take risk, you lose everything. “You don’t have to give the entrepreneurs the cash, but you can buy all they need to start the business for them. As you make the money, you will monitor the business as it is going. Don’t leave them alone because your money is involved and you will collect it back with interest,” he said.

    He said the challenge with Nigerians is that they want to start a business and make the money immediately; they do not want to be involved in a long term business. “Every business will have a patient time but our banks are not patient, they want quick money which cannot work in entrepreneurship journey,” he said.

    He lamented that Nigeria is not leveraging on anything, adding that nearly every sector is untapped, including, tourism, culture and entertainment.

    “Most of the people causing traffic are those looking for job, who will wake up every morning, over 3000, 4000 youths are on the road every day looking for jobs. If there were jobs, most of them will be in the factory for months before they return. If the unemployed people are reduced, crime will reduce, government expenditure on security will reduce and the money spent on security will be diverted to job creation,” he said.

  • SMEs vital to healthcare

    SMEs vital to healthcare

    Stakeholders in the health sector have identified well-funded small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) as a tool to drive sustainable healthcare. According to them,  SMEs deliver 60 per cent services in the sector.

    They spoke at a health sector small and medium scale enterprises forum with the theme: Exploring opportunities for SMEs financing in the health sector.

    It was organised by the Lagos State Ministry of Health in collaboration with UKAID’s Partnership for Transforming Health System Phase II (PATHS 2) and Bank of Industry (BoI).

    Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Health, Dr Modele Osunkiyesi, said the availability of funds to drive the health system is important.

    The state government, she said, cannot drive the financial investment needed for a viable healthcare system alone, without creating a synergy and a friendly environment for private sector-driven healthcare delivery.

    Dr Osunkiyesi, represented by the Executive Secretary, Health Facilities Monitoring and Accreditation Agency (HEFAMAA), Dr Mabel Ajekugele, said the major challenge is the need to consider the demand and supply aspect of the healthcare system. She added that finance is another constraints.

    “The budgetary allocations to overhead cost, payment of salaries and wages to our teaming healthcare workers are worrisome if we are to address the problems of other sectors,” she said.

    She urged financial institutions and supporting partners to make funds available to health facilities, especially those in the private sector to provide qualitative healthcare.

    Managing Director, Bank of Industry (BoI), Mr Rasheed Olaoluwa, said healthcare is very important to development, adding that it is the indices of millennium development goals (MDGs).

    Olaoluwa, who chaired the occasion, noted that healthcare must be qualitative to improve the competitiveness.

    The BOI, he said, has been supporting the sector to access funds, adding that eight companies are using the bank’s facilities to attain good manufacturing practice.

    “Two companies have achieved that,” he said.

    Olaoluwa said companies with good proposals should come forward, adding: “We have 14 offices across Nigeria to look after their interests.”

    BoI, he said, would continue to support investors in the sector, stressing that the bank only considers business models that are very clear.

    “As a lender we want to be sure that their businesses can generate sufficient funds to pay back their loans,” he said.

    He said BoI usually looks at the quality of the team a company presents, dedication and passion. For him, 100 percent commitment is important to accessing loans.

    National programme manager, PATHS 2, Mr Mike Egboh, said it was good to know that banks and the health sector are working together.

    PATHS2, he said, has been receiving support from the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID), adding that the programme, which hitherto was for six years has been increased to eight years.

    The aim, he said, was to use the country’s resources effectively and efficiently to achieve development, especially in delivering effective, quality and sustainable pro-poor health system.

    He condemned the lack of development in the country, stressing that Nigeria’s position as the seventh largest producer of oil did not transform to a vibrant economy.

    “The country contributes 10 per  cent of maternal mortality globally. Some war-torn countries are better off. Liberia’s health indices are better than those of Nigeria,” he said.

    Egboh said if there is adequate investment in the healthcare, there would be development, which would reduce health tourism.

    “Many Nigerians still lack access to healthcare. There is the need for us to have social responsibilities,” he said.

    He called on investors to take advantage of benefits, which abound in the health sector because doctors are not real businessmen as their calling is to save lives.

    “Healthcare should be everybody’s business. Health practitioners need help because they cannot do it alone. The federal and state governments need to contribute their quotas,” he said.

    Former Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Health, Dr Femi Olugbile said SMEs are responsible for taking care of health seeking encounters of people daily.

    According to him, there are less than 300 state-owned health facilities in Lagos with the rest totaling about 3000 owned by private sector.

    Olugile, who spoke on the ‘’Role of government in promoting SMEs in the health sector’’, said the governments have their hands full with responsibilities of governance and running of health policies and programmes.

  • ‘Blood is vital to longevity’

    Blood is life. Knowing one’s blood group can ensure longevity. According to a Naturopath, Dr. Adebukola Olujide, the knowledge of a pension’s blood group can help to determine the foods, drinks (apart from water), spices and condiments suitable for his health.

    “A fundamental relationship has been established between each blood type and the dietary and lifestyle choices that will help each person to live at the optimal best,” she said.

    Dr Olujide said knowing one’s blood group can equally help in averting illnesses, as one will take cognisance of which vitamins and supplements to go for or avoid; which medications functions best in the systems. The best form of stress management one can engage in, what mode and duration of exercise is best for their constitutions.

    She said the knowledge of the blood group and how same affect health would make one avoid common viruses and infections, how to fight back life threatening disease, how to slow down the ageing process by avoiding factors that are against one’s blood type/group, which cause rapid cell deterioration.

    It does not stop there. Knowing one’s blood group “has even been used to know people’s personality as each of the blood group has different personality traits and peculiarities. The knowledge and use of blood group for these benefits is for both children and adults,” said Dr Olujide.

    She shared her personal experience, as she used to feel irritated and impatient with one of her children because of what she saw as his slowness and lack of agility – until she got to know that he was only showing behaviour typical of his blood group. And she adjusted to his lifestyle.

    Dr Olujide explained that each person’s blood type (in the ABO Blood Group System: A, B, AB OR O) has been found to be one of the keys that unlocks the door to the mysteries of health, disease, longevity, physical vitality and emotional strength. A person’s blood type could determine his susceptibility to illness, which foods to eat and how the person should exercise; it is a factor in energy levels, the efficiency with which one burns calories, people’s emotional responses to stress and even their personality type.

    She said the connection between blood type and diet may sound radical, but it is not. “It has long been realised that there was a missing link in the comprehension of the process that leads either to the path of wellness or the dismal trail of disease. There had to be a reason why there were so many paradoxes in dietary studies and disease survival.

    “There also had to be an explanation for why some people were able to lose weight on particular diets, while others were not; why some people retained vitality late into life, while others deteriorated mentally and physically. Blood type analysis has helped to explain these paradoxes. And the more the connection is explored, the more valid it is found to become,” said Dr Olujide.

    The naturopath explained that blood types are as fundamental as creation itself, “Because in the masterful logic of nature, the blood types follow an unbroken trail from the earliest moment of human creation to the present day. They are the signature of human ancient ancestors on the indestructible parchment of history.

    “Discovery has been made on how to use the blood type as a cellular fingerprint that unravels many of the major mysteries surrounding the human quest for good health. This work is an extension of the ground breaking findings concerning human DNA. The understanding of blood type takes the science of genetics one step further by stating unequivocally that every human being is utterly unique. There is no right or wrong lifestyle or diet; there are only right or wrong choices to be made based on people’s individual genetic codes,” said Dr Olujide.

    She said a lot of work in the field of blood type analysis has been carried out with interesting findings. “For example, patients who were Type A seemed to do poorly on high-protein diets that included generous portions of meat, but did very well on vegetable proteins such as soya and tofus. Dairy products tended to produce copious amounts of mucus discharge in the sinuses and respiratory passages of Type As. When told to increase their levels of physical activity and exercise, Type As usually felt fatigued and unwell; when they performed lighter forms of exercise, such as yoga, they felt alert and energised.”

    Dr Olujide said on the other hand, Type O patients thrived on high-protein diets, and they felt invigorated by intense physical activities, such as jogging and aerobics, fitting aptly into the saying one man’s food is another man’s poison. Correlations have also been found between the ABO blood types and a predilection for certain diseases. For example two major diseases of the stomach are associated with blood type. The first is the peptic ulcer, a condition often related to higher than average stomach acid levels. This condition was reported to be more common in people with Type O blood than in people with other blood types. This correlated with the earlier observation that Type O patients did well on animal products and protein diets—foods that require more stomach acid for proper digestion.”

    According to her, the second correlation was an association between Type A and stomach cancer. Stomach cancer, she explained, was often linked to low levels of stomach acid production, as was pernicious anaemia, another disorder found more often in Type A individuals. “Pernicious anaemia is related to a lack of vitamin B12, which requires sufficient stomach acid for its absorption. In other words, Type O blood predisposed people to an illness associated with too much stomach acid, while on the other hand, Type A blood predisposed people to two illnesses associated with too little stomach acid,” said Dr Olujide.

  • ‘Ideas vital to business growth’

    ‘Ideas vital to business growth’

    An upcoming entrepreneur has discovered the treasure in alkaline solution, which cleanses and detoxifies the human system. DANIEL ESSIET writes.

    Ideas leading to successful businesses sometimes come from the most seemingly mundane problems. Such ideas have often times lead to providing solutions to addressing the problems and subsequently, becoming an instant business success.

    The business success of Echeng Agbong, Chief Executive, Cheng Young Nigeria Enterprises, Lagos, is an example of an idea that set out to provide a solution only to turn out to become a successful business initiative useful in curbing the spread of waterborne illnesses.

    For Agbong, the inspiration to begin his business came in 1991, after exploring bio alkaline water therapy. While he was experimenting on alternative medical therapies, Agbong came across the alkaline solution, which has since turned out to be effective in purifying and energising water.

    Globally, the therapy has been known to be capable of reducing  weight, providing allergy and arthritis relief, improving bowel regularity, increasing energy, advancing  hydration of cells and skin, improving digestion, reducing cholesterol, and promoting overall better health. In addition, it also allows optimum cleansing and detoxification of the human body.

    Gradually gaining acceptance in the market, Agbong is delighted that he belongs to the group of growing entrepreneurs driven by passion for making the world a healthier place. But crucial to his success were the many resources he tapped along the way, especially in capacity building, which included consultations with other entrepreneurs, leading him to joining the Association of Micro Entrepreneurs of Nigeria (AMEN).

    To his advantage, there are many areas in the market that some natural brand has not claimed, while the business itself has good potential to grow with other health products.

    Abong is a happy man for providing a water solution that will help Nigerians experience a reinvigorated healthy living. Though a winning product, there were a lot of challenges penetrating the market. One of this is the acceptability of the product in the market. Besides, the difficulty of  registering with the National Agency for Foods, Drugs and Administration and Control (NAFDAC),   funding has remained a major concern for this budding entrepreneur.

    Yet, he remains undeterred. For him, an entrepreneur is like a fighter – he must seek out the people that will help you succeed. He is still moving ahead, always trying to realign a best way to monetise what he has done.

    He is confident that natural foods and products are still the big thing in the market place, and with growing sales, the development of the product is continuing.