News Wings

Tag: Artificial Intelligence

  • Kaspersky assists International Criminal Police Organisation (INTERPOL) in operation to disrupt cybercrime in African countries

    Kaspersky assists International Criminal Police Organisation (INTERPOL) in operation to disrupt cybercrime in African countries

    Kaspersky has supported INTERPOL with threat intelligence data in its Africa Cyber Surge II operation, which enabled investigators to identify compromised infrastructure and apprehend threat actors suspected of cybercrimes across the African region. The operation resulted in the arrest of 14 perpetrators and the identification of network infrastructure, linked to financial losses of more than $40 million.

    The Africa Cyber Surge operation is a continuous multi-stakeholder effort aimed at fighting cybercrime and protecting communities in the region. The first part of the Africa Cyber Surge operation, in which Kaspersky has also taken part, was carried out from July to November 2022, and resulted in a series of operational and investigative activities against the threat actors behind the cybercrimes in the African region.

    The Africa Cyber Surge II operation was launched in April 2023 and lasted for four months, spanning across 25 African countries. The action was undertaken by INTERPOL’s Cybercrime Directorate, under the auspices of the INTERPOL Africa Cybercrime Operations desk, and INTERPOL’s Support Programme for the African Union (ISPA) in relation to AFRIPOL. The effort was also supported by the UK Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office, the German Federal Foreign Office, and the Council of Europe.

    Together with INTERPOL’s other private sector partners, Kaspersky has shared with the international agency indicators of compromise (IoCs), including malicious command and control servers, phishing links and domains, and scam IPs. As a result, INTERPOL streamlined cooperation between African law enforcement agencies to investigate and disrupt cybercriminals suspected of cyber extortion, phishing, business email compromise and online scams.

    “The Africa Cyber Surge II operation has led to the strengthening of cybercrime departments in member countries as well as the solidification of partnerships with crucial stakeholders, such as computer emergency response teams and Internet Service Providers. This will further contribute to reducing the global impact of cybercrime and protecting communities in the region,” said Jürgen Stock, INTERPOL Secretary General.

    “In its mission to build a safer digital world, Kaspersky has been giving due credit to the importance of multilateral cooperation, involving the private sector, international law enforcement and national authorities,” commented Yuliya Shlychkova, Public Affairs Director at Kaspersky. “Only by harnessing the power of effective private-public partnership, can we give an impetus to the further strengthening of the cybersecurity industry in the African region to ensure that African countries can realise their outstanding potential without hindrance and regard for cybercrimes.”

    “As digital systems, Information Communication Technologies and Artificial Intelligence grow in prominence, it is urgent that public and private actors work hand in hand to prevent these technologies from being exploited by cybercriminals. Coordinated operations such as Cyber Surge are necessary to disrupt criminal networks and build individual, organisational and society-wide levels of protection,” said AFRIPOL’s Acting Executive Director, Ambassador Jalel Chelba.

    The data sharing exchange between Kaspersky and INTERPOL is part of a five-year cooperation agreement, signed by both parties in 2019, which also provides for delivering human resources support and training to the law enforcement agency. Since the document was signed, Kaspersky and INTERPOL have maintained a positive momentum of joint operations aimed at combating cybercrime and awareness-raising projects to help people become more aware of modern-day cyber risks.

  • CNN’s Decoded explores how the Internet of Things is changing the way we live

    CNN’s Decoded explores how the Internet of Things is changing the way we live

    In a new episode of Decoded, CNN’s Anna Stewart explores the smart, connected devices that make up the Internet of Things (IoT). From ordinary household items to complicated industrial systems, smart devices are changing the way we live.

    Stewart visits the Expo 2020 site in Dubai to see how smart cities are using IoT to enable more informed city planning. Helmut Von Struve, CEO of Siemens Middle East gives an example, “Artificial intelligence can say within 20 minutes, 30 minutes, there would be maybe 150 people walking in this direction. So, you can already start cooling the building down.”

    IoT devices are also being used to combat climate change. In Boston, a connected forest is helping scientists study how much carbon dioxide trees take out of the atmosphere. Jackie Hatala Matthes, Senior Scientist at the Harvard Forest describes the project, “With IoT, we’re able to get really high-resolution data, high temporal resolution data, and we’re able to look at those changes in real time, which helps to feed into other global models of climate change.” One of the trees even uses IoT to tweet the data and communicate in real time what the tree is experiencing.

    In Shenzhen, known as the Silicon Valley of hardware, the programme meets German entrepreneur, Florian Simmendinger who has developed a modern twist on a metronome. He explains that although it’s possible to create smart devices for many tasks now, the best ones are those that fulfil a need, “If you find something meaningful that actually improves the product experience, then you know you have a real winner on your hands when it comes to an IoT product. There’s definitely a case in the IoT space of just because you can connect something doesn’t necessarily mean you should.”

    At the Jebel Ali Port in Dubai, Stewart meets Ibrahim Al Najjar, Vice President IT, at DP World who demonstrates how a network of connected sensors, devices, and software all communicate to operate the smart port.

    Stewart also meets the man who created the term ‘Internet of Things’. In the late 1990s, Kevin Ashton was searching for a name for his presentation on supply chain logistics, “At that time the internet was such a big buzzword. I needed to shoehorn the word internet in to like get any attention at all. and here we are now. Still talking about it. That’s the biggest surprise.”

    Ashton describes what makes a good IoT device, “The thing that I look for to make it the Internet of Things is it knows something about the world without a human being telling it. I don’t really think about these voice assistants people have in their kitchen where you say you know, Alexa, add this to my shopping list. Well, in my world, Alexa would know that you needed to add it to the shopping list, it wouldn’t need you to tell it.”

    The idea that everything we touch, every we move we make, can be monitored and uploaded to the cloud may seem convenient and efficient, but for some it raises concerns about regulation and trust. Stewart speaks to professional hacker Ken Munro, CEO of Pen Test Partners. He demonstrates how easy it is to hack IoT devices like a children’s doll with speech recognition and warns, “As we know, legislation often trails innovation. So I think it’s really important that we bring in some regulation to help manufacturers prioritise cybersecurity and also help protect us consumers from manufacturers who may be a bit fast and loose with security.”

    The show also meets the man behind the first smart device – a Coca Cola vending machine, and visits an Amazon factory using IoT devices to be faster and more efficient.

    See more from Decoded:

    https://edition.cnn.com/specials/world/decoded
  • Microsoft Airband to Connect nearly 40 Million People across Latin America and Africa (

    Microsoft Airband to Connect nearly 40 Million People across Latin America and Africa (

    By Vickie Robinson

    Today, we’re announcing new and expanded Airband partnerships set to provide high-speed internet access to nearly 40 million people across Latin America and Africa. These partnerships in Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Guatemala and Cote d’Ivoire, Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania and Uganda mark significant progress in our commitment to extend high-speed internet access to 250 million people living in unserved and underserved areas around the world, including 100 million in Africa.

    Across both Latin America and Africa, limited access to broadband can mean that people have fewer opportunities to develop the digital fluency and skills needed to participate in the digital economy.

    At Microsoft, we believe that internet access and meaningful connectivity is a fundamental right. The Microsoft Airband initiative was launched to bring transformative connectivity to unserved and underserved communities around the world. Through the Airband initiative and its partners, Microsoft is serving as a catalyst to enable affordable access to connectivity, specifically focusing on regions with lower digital connectivity rates.

    Connecting communities across Latin America

    In recent years, about 37 percent of Latin Americans in rural areas have connectivity options, compared with 71% of the urban population. Airband together with Wayfree in Guatemala, Fundacion Pais Digital in Chile, Brisanet in Brazil, and Anditel in Colombia will deliver 18 million people with access to high-speed internet.

    Latin America combines thriving urban cities and rural areas with vast cultural heritage sites, however, like most places, there are unique challenges in advancing connectivity in certain regions. With greater access to the internet, Airband through its partners, hope to address societal issues, such as employment and education that can be strengthened through greater connectivity.

    • Brazil: Airband is expanding our footprint to Brazil, the largest market in Latin America, as part of our new partnership with Brisanet . Working with Microsoft and NGOs like Amigos do Bem and Mais Unidos, Brisanet will extend high-speed internet access to more than 11 million people and support social and economic development in low-income regions of the country.
    • Chile: Fundación País Digital is a nonprofit organization working to develop Chile’s digital economy, expand connectivity, and improve digital literacy throughout the country. Through their newest initiative, Programa Conectando Territorios, Fundación País Digital will expand connectivity to rural and underserved areas in two regions: the Biobío Region in central Chile, which has been significantly impacted by earthquakes; and the Antofagasta Region, known for its mining industry. With Airband support, in addition to connectivity, the program will target economic opportunities through training and employing local community members to maintain the new networks and will bring internet access to an additional one million people by the end of 2025.
    • Colombia: Our commitment with longtime partner Anditel to provide coverage for more than 600,000 people in five years has gone well ahead of plan. To date we have nearly doubled that target and are now expanding our partnership to cover an additional three million people by the end of 2025. Partnering with the Colombian government on ICT 360, the national connectivity program, Anditel aims to cover 85% of Colombians by 2026.
    • Guatemala: Wayfree is the leading provider of Internet connectivity in Guatemala. They are deploying wireless access zones in towns and villages, already covering over 40 percent of the 340 Guatemalan municipalities with the goal of making universal wireless internet access a reality. Airband’s support will catalyze deployments in the remaining municipalities in Guatemala and ultimately provide three million people with access to high-speed internet coverage by the end of 2025.

    Crossing the continent of Africa

    Our efforts on the African continent are some of our most longstanding and farthest reaching. Today many African nations are rising economic powers, but on a continent with so many vast rural areas, delivering connectivity can be a challenge. On average Africa has a 40 percent internet usage rate. Partnerships are key to the success of the Airband model, and we are building upon our existing partnerships in Africa, including with Mawingu and Tizeti.

    • Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda: Microsoft Airband’s relationship with Kenyan service provider Mawingu began in 2014 with a pilot in Nanyuki and has since expanded to deliver high-speed internet access to four million Kenyans living in rural areas. Mawingu was Airband’s first partner, and thanks to the public-partnership model, today the company is Kenya’s leading internet service provider dedicated to rural and peri-urban markets. This latest expansion of our partnership with Mawingu will bring coverage to an incremental 16 million people across Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda by the end of 2025, ultimately covering a total of 20 million people.

    Mawingu provides meaningful internet access to locations throughout Kenya, such as hotspots, vocational schools and businesses. Just one example of Airband’s partnership has resulted in the deployment of more than 700 hotspots and connectivity for more than 100 primary schools, enabling community members to access digital skills training and essential education materials. The company has also partnered with Unilever and Microsoft Philanthropies to provide access and skills to female entrepreneurs.

    • Nigeria and Cote d’Ivoire: Airband partner Tizeti has brought coverage to more than 900,000 people in Nigeria, expanding from Lagos to focus on underserved states across the country. Microsoft and Tizeti are expanding this partnership to Cote d’Ivoire, a cultural crossroads of West Africa, to bring internet access to almost 5 million people. Given that electricity is frequently unavailable, insufficient or unreliable in many parts of Africa, this expansion of our partnership includes infrastructure support and deployment of eight solar powered towers to help provide connectivity to households, small businesses and hotspots. This access will empower greater access to education, healthcare, and employment.

    Bringing more digital opportunities to more people

    Through partnering with Microsoft’s Airband Initiative, organizations have additional support to create the infrastructure needed to provide connectivity support in many different ecosystems that ultimately drives self-empowerment and sustainable development and growth. These partnerships are essential in providing local expertise and experience to help achieve a greater goal tied to what can be harnessed with the support of connectivity.

    As technology, like AI, advances, being connected provides a path forward to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.

    Vickie Robinson is the GM of Microsoft Airband Initiative

  • Feature: 5 Public Relations Trends To Watch Out For In 2023

    Feature: 5 Public Relations Trends To Watch Out For In 2023

    By Elvis Eromosele 

    Every end of year, we look forward to the new year with expectations. We expect the new year to be, well new and different. 2023 is no exception, it will be new and different. 

    While everyone will like to have a sense of what to expect in the new year, I wrote this piece for public relations practitioners, it is a sneak preview of how the practice will evolve in 2023.

    Here are my top 5 public relations trends to watch out for in 2023 (there is a surprise for you at the end. Please don’t spoil it by rushing to the end to read it). 

    1. Increased focus on virtual and hybrid events: As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact how we gather and communicate, there is likely to be a greater emphasis on virtual and hybrid events in public relations. This includes virtual press conferences, webinars, and online product launches.
    2. Emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion: There has been a growing focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion in recent years, and this trend is expected to continue in 2023. Public relations professionals must consider the diversity of their target audience and ensure their message is inclusive and representative of the communities they are trying to reach.
    3. Rise of influencer marketing: Influencer marketing, which involves partnering with social media influencers to promote a product or service, has become an increasingly popular marketing tactic. This trend is expected to continue in 2023, as influencer marketing can be a powerful way to reach and engage with audiences.
    4. Greater emphasis on data and analytics: Public relations professionals are expected to pay more attention to data and analytics in 2023, as they seek to understand and measure the impact of their campaigns. This includes tracking metrics such as website traffic, social media engagement, and media mentions.
    5. Use of artificial intelligence and automation: Artificial intelligence (AI) and automation are expected to play a greater role in public relations in 2023. This includes the use of AI for tasks such as media monitoring, sentiment analysis, and content creation, as well as the use of automation for tasks such as social media posting and email marketing.

    Here is the surprise that I spoke about – this piece was written entirely by ChatGPT. I simply added the introduction and this conclusion.

    Clearly, number 5 is already in play. With AI, content creation has entered a new and revolutionary phase. 

    It is now almost bye bye content writer, welcome AI. 

    This is wishing you a Merry Christmas and a great new year! 

    Elvis Eromosele, a Corporate Communication professional and public affairs analyst lives in Lagos.

  • Nigeria’s Dangote Refinery Will Transform our Downstream Sector, Says Ghana Petroleum Authority

    Nigeria’s Dangote Refinery Will Transform our Downstream Sector, Says Ghana Petroleum Authority

    Chief Executive Officer of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) of Ghana, Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, said the coming onstream of 650,000 barrels-per-day (bpd) Dangote Petroleum Refinery will transform the Ghanaian downstream sector through the reduction in the cost of importation of petroleum products into Ghana. 

    Speaking at the 16th Oil Trading and Logistics Expo in Lagos with the theme: “Regulating Downstream Energy Transition in Dynamic Times”, Abdul-Hamid said the completion of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery project would be a breakthrough for the West African region which has for a long time depended on importation of petroleum products. 

    According to him, Ghana is presently facing the challenge of continuous rise in the cost of petroleum products, adding that getting importers to turn their attention towards Nigeria, rather than going all the way to the Netherlands for petroleum products importation, would help his country stem the tide of a continuous increase in the price of fuel.  

    He stated: “The Dangote Petroleum Refinery will have a huge impact on Ghana’s downstream sector. Right now, Ghana’s downstream industry is completely deregulated. There is no petrol subsidy in Ghana. For a deregulated market where the importers recover their costs fully, importing from Nigeria will certainly be more cost-effective and cheaper than importing from Rotterdam in the Netherlands where we get the bulk of our fuel in Ghana. 

    “As we all know, the price builds up for a liter of fuel will include the cost of shipment, transportation, insurance, and others, but if we are importing from Nigeria into Ghana, this will bring down the cost of fuel in our country. Ghanaians are very excited about the prospect of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery. Ghana had in the past built a good relationship where we get petroleum products from Nigeria at a reasonable and more affordable cost. I believe that the coming onstream of Dangote Petroleum Refinery will further strengthen the existing relationship between Nigeria and Ghana.” 

    Abdul-Hamid said the Ghanaian government was also developing a 60-billion-dollar petroleum hub project on 20,000 acres in the western part of the country for storage and marine facilities. 

    “All the above-mentioned projects will help accelerate the petroleum hub, consisting of refineries, and petrochemical development of the continent’s oil and gas resources, by connecting the downstream to the upstream. It will promote cleaner fossil fuels and biofuels as the pathway to a just energy transition. Gas has been accepted as the transition fuel because gas is the least carbon-emitting fossil fuel”, he added. 

    Speaking also at the event, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Nigeria, Gabriel Aduda said deregulation would increase transparency in the downstream sector of the petroleum industry. He said full deregulation would also create healthy competition among investors.

    Aduda, who was represented by Mr. Augustine Okwudiafor, the Deputy Director, of Downstream Department, Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources, noted that deregulation would give business guarantees to potential investors at the stage of conceptualisation. According to him, deregulation would significantly reduce, if not eradicate completely, the diversion and smuggling of petroleum products across Nigerian borders. 

    “All hands are on deck towards full deregulation of the downstream sector, as this will ensure commercialisation and liberalisation of the sector. It will also increase investment opportunities, create more jobs and promote a seamless energy transition. All these measures and many more will cushion the projected impact of downstream sector deregulation on consumers and the economy at large,” he said. 

    He further said data was key in the Oil and Gas Industry, and that any reliable and accurate data would give investors a certain level of assurance. 

    “Hence, the government is keen and determined to harmonise all downstream data across the relevant agencies and parastatals to eradicate data variations. The government, through the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, its agencies, and the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology, is considering enhanced technologies. They include Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to monitor and gather downstream data for effective policy formulation and investment guidance,” he said. 

    Aduda emphasised that oil also had a place in the energy transition space in the sense that oil could be made cleaner through the development and use of appropriate technologies. He said moving the downstream sector forward to that enviable position required collaborative efforts from all stakeholders. “I challenge you all to come along to move the downstream sector towards achieving the downstream we could all be proud of,” he added.

  • Ecobank Partners with AMA Academy to Launch First Pan-African Fintech Training and Awards for Journalists

    Ecobank Partners with AMA Academy to Launch First Pan-African Fintech Training and Awards for Journalists

    Ecobank Group, the leading Pan-African banking Group, is committed to developing and supporting Fintechs to transform digital finance and banking, and today announces a partnership with AMA Academy, which is the only free-to-use pan-African online learning platform dedicated to upskilling journalists in Africa. Ecobank Group and AMA Academy will work together to develop customised fintech training modules for business, finance, and tech journalists across the continent. Modules will be available in two languages: English and French. 

    The five-module curriculum will be taught online by industry experts and will culminate in recognition and other awards for Africa’s top fintech journalists. It will cover topics including the history of financial services in Africa, its transformation, blockchain, AI in fintech and Open Banking. It will also cover security, regulation, governance, inclusion, and future trends of the fintech market in Africa. The partnership aims to provide a deeper knowledge and understanding of the fastest-growing industry on the continent and to improve the quality of reporting and have more effective public awareness. 

    Eloïne Barry, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of African Media Agency and AMA Academy, said “We are delighted to partner with Ecobank Group, which is at the forefront of fintech transformation and progression in Africa. Our Academy is equally committed to enhancing the skills of journalists by creating access to experts and training. Journalists are often faced with several beats to cover, and our aim is to help support the quality and effectiveness of their reporting.”  

    Africa is responsible for an astonishing 45.6% of mobile money activity in the world – a phenomenon made possible by the rapid growth in access to the internet and smartphone devices, and further accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.  

    According to tech industry researchers, in 2021 fintech companies received 60% of the over $4 billion investments in the tech industry, surpassing total investments made into the broader tech start-up ecosystem in previous years. An estimated 6 million young Africans gain access to the internet every year, delivering ripe growth prospects in budding fintech sectors like agriculture, insurance, healthcare, clean energy and education; in addition to relatively unexplored areas such as crowdfunding, blockchain technology, artificial intelligence and augmented reality. 

    “In the midst of all the positivity around growth in the African fintech industry, there is a deficiency and imbalance in how this story is told and understood. The narrative today is driven by international media sources. We lack a strong homegrown narrative with an in-depth analysis of what is really taking place in Africa, by Africans. This course will give journalists the confidence, skills and understanding required to become as relevant and competitive as journalists operating within the same space globally,” Eloïne Barry added. 

    Djiba Diallo, Senior Fintech Advisor at Ecobank Group, commented on the partnership saying “The continent has seen the rise of ‘challenger markets’ outside of the traditional strongholds of Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa to include Ethiopia, Ghana, Rwanda, Senegal, and Uganda, just to mention a few. These are countries in which Ecobank is present and where the fintech media training course will have a real impact. As a pan-African banking Group, we are committed to growing local fintech solutions, many of which have the potential to become global solutions, and to empowering our local media partners.” 

    Fintech Journalist of the Year Award 

    Journalists who attend the full training modules will also stand the chance of being awarded the top Anglophone and Francophone fintech journalist at an awards ceremony following the training. 

    Journalists based in Africa covering business, Finance and Technology, should visit https://amacademy.io/ecobank to register for the fintech masterclass. 

  • Emirates Flight Catering Opens World’s Largest Hydroponic Farm in Dubai

    Emirates Flight Catering Opens World’s Largest Hydroponic Farm in Dubai

    Emirates Flight Catering is opening the world’s largest farm in Dubai. Bustanica has opened the doors to the largest hydroponic farm on the planet, backed by an investment of over US$40m.

    The facility is the first vertical farm for Emirates Crop One, the joint venture between Emirates Flight Catering (EKFC), one of the world’s largest catering operations serving more than 100 airlines, and Crop One, an industry leader in technology-driven indoor vertical farming.

    Located near Al Maktoum International Airport at Dubai World Central, the 330,000sqft facility is geared to produce more than 1,000,000 kilograms of high-quality leafy greens annually, while requiring 95% less water than conventional agriculture. At any point in time, the facility grows in excess of 1m cultivars (plants), which will provide an output of 3,000 kgs per day.
    Bustanica is driven by powerful technology – machine learning, artificial intelligence and advanced methods – and a highly specialised in-house team that includes agronomy experts, engineers, horticulturists and plant scientists.

    A continuous production cycle ensures the produce is super fresh and clean, and grown without pesticides, herbicides, or chemicals. Passengers on Emirates and other airlines can look forward to forking these delicious leafy greens, including lettuces, arugula, mixed salad greens, and spinach, onboard their flights from July. Bustanica is not just revolutionising salads in the sky – UAE consumers will soon be able to add these greens to their shopping carts at the nearest supermarkets. Bustanica also plans to expand into the production and sale of fruits and vegetables.

    HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline and Group said: “Long-term food security and self-sufficiency are vital to the economic growth of any country, and the UAE is no exception. We’ve specific challenges in our region, given the limitations around arable land and climate. Bustanica ushers in a new era of innovation and investments, which are important steps for sustainable growth and align with our country’s well-defined food and water security strategies.

    “Emirates Flight Catering constantly invests in the latest technologies to delight customers, optimise operations, and minimise our environmental footprint. Bustanica helps secure our supply chain, and ensures our customers can enjoy locally sourced, nutritious produce. By bringing production closer to consumption, we’re reducing the food journey from farm to fork. Congratulations to the Bustanica team for their remarkable achievements so far and for setting global standards and benchmarks in agronomy.”

    Craig Ratajczyk, Chief Executive Officer, Crop One said: “After significant planning and construction, and navigating the unforeseen challenges of the pandemic, we’re thrilled to celebrate this tremendous milestone alongside our joint venture partner, Emirates Flight Catering.

    “It’s our mission to cultivate a sustainable future to meet global demand for fresh, local food, and this first large format farm is the manifestation of that commitment. This new facility serves as a model for what’s possible around the globe.”

    The farm’s closed-loop system is designed to circulate water through the plants to maximise water usage and efficiency. When the water vaporises, it is recovered and recycled into the system, saving 250m litres of water every year compared to traditional outdoor farming for the same output. Bustanica will have zero impact on the world’s threatened soil resources, an incredibly reduced reliance on water and year-round harvests unhampered by weather conditions and pests. Consumers buying

    Bustanica’s greens from supermarkets can eat it straight from the bag – even washing can damage the leaves and introduce contaminants.

    Crop One Holdings Inc. (Crop One), headquartered in Massachusetts, USA, is an established and experienced vertical farming leader with continuous commercial operation exceeding 6 years. Leveraging new technological and biological advancements, Crop One has built a scalable, global model to bring fresh, local produce, to previously ungrowable environments.-ends.

    Emirates Flight Catering is one of the world’s largest catering operations. Offering airline, events and VIP catering as well as ancillary services including laundry, food production and airport lounge food & beverage, EKFC is a trusted partner for over 100 airline customers, hospitality groups and UAE government entities. Each day, the company’s 11,000 dedicated employees prepare an average of 200,000 meals and handle 210 tonnes of laundry.

  • First Katalyst @10: Experts Canvass For Rethink of Marketing Strategy At The Marketing Conclave

    First Katalyst @10: Experts Canvass For Rethink of Marketing Strategy At The Marketing Conclave

    Marketing and marketing communications experts have urged marketers to rethink and put the customer at the centre of their strategy, and think beyond the four Ps of marketing if they want to remain relevant.  

    They made this charge at the maiden edition of The Marketing Conclave, a thought-leadership conference organised by First Katalyst Marketing, a leading Below-the-line agency, to commemorate its 10th anniversary in Nigeria.  

    The event had all the crème de la crème in the marketing industry who gathered to celebrate with First Katalyst Marketing as well as shared insight, forecast and proffered solutions on some of the challenges facing the industry.  

    The Managing Director of the agency, Soji Odedina, said the story of the agency started from a humble beginning and has evolved into a household name having offices in other African markets. He added that The Marketing Conclave is its agency’s gift to the industry and would become an annual event. 

     “The Marketing Conclave is our 10th-anniversary gift to the marketing community in Africa. As a platform, it is designed to bring practitioners together to discuss matters arising concerning theory and practice,”

    He thanked all the stakeholders that stood behind the agency since it commenced operations a decade ago and used the occasion to introduce the company’s new Chairman, Tsola Barrow to the audience. 

    Professor Chris Ogbechie, Dean, Lagos Business School and keynote speaker of the event while speaking on the theme, “Marketing for the Future” said marketing drives every economy of the world, and COVID-19 has forced many businesses to change their business model, adding that if businesses don’t innovate, they will seize to exist. 

    He added that today consumers and other stakeholders expect companies to do more than just offer products and services. “Consumers are more sophisticated and now expect companies to lead with purpose, by deeply embedding social and environmental impact.”

    He disclosed the most exciting consumers today are millennials and Gen Z. He explained that they are tech-savvy, they hold the future and they have a rental culture. He urged brands to also keep an eye on Generation Alpha, “Keep your eyes on Generation Alpha because they are the consumer of tomorrow”

    Thereafter, he stated that five key trends will drive the growth of marketing in the country and globally. They are Artificial Intelligence, the rise of voice marketing, Blockchain, Virtual Reality, and Data. These issues, he explained, will drive key marketing decisions in the near future. 

    He urged marketers to move from 4Ps which are product, price, place, and promotion; to 4Es which are experience, engagement, exclusivity, and emotion in order to stay relevant in the future.  

    Meanwhile, panelists who spoke on the theme included Abiodun Ajiborede, Marketing Director, Monument Distilleries; Olumide Aniyikaye, Head of Marketing, Grand Cereal; Tina Shobola, Customer Development, Manager Distribution & Key Accounts, Lafarge West Africa and Idiare Atimomo, Co-Founder/COO, Up In The Sky urged marketers to focus on where the consumers are and create memorable experiences for them. They also called for the deployment of storytelling, influential marketing, and keying into trends.

    In another vein, other experts at the event also dissent on the topic, “Advertising regulations in the age of new media” and “Below the line, above the line, where is the line?” the session had Steve Babaeko, President, Association of Advertising, Agencies of Nigeria (AAAN); Osamede Uwubanmwen, President, Advertisers Association Of Nigeria(ADVAN); Agbons Igiewe, General Manager, Ziza Digital; Tunji Adeyinka, President, Experiential Marketers Association Of Nigeria (EXMAN); Lampe Omoyele, Managing Director, Nitro 121; Dr. Omotola Bamigbaiye- Elatuyi, Head Of Marketing, Sub-Saharan Africa, Pladis Global; Susan Agbo of the Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON); Yetunde Adegbite, Cluster Managing Director, Vizeum, Posterscope and Iprospect; who called for innovations, customer centre initiatives, fair regulation by government agencies among others.

    One of the special guests, Lolu Akinwunmi, Chairman, Prima Garnet Africa, applauded the agency for its resistance, creativity, innovation, and contributions to the marketing industry over the years despite the challenges many businesses face operating in the country. He also commended it for organising The Marketing Conclave and advised the agency to continue to invest in its people and the industry.

    As part of the celebration, First Katalyst Marketing embarked on a charity project in its decision to give back to society. It renovated the sickbay of the Adeniyi Jones Pry School, Akora, Lagos.

    Currently, the agency has a presence in Ghana and plans to expand to other African countries soon. In ten years, the agency has evolved into a respected player in the industry, winning many notable local and international awards for its contribution to the growth of the marketing landscape. Recently, it emerged as the Most outstanding Experiential Marketing Agency at Marketing Edge Awards in 2021 and Best BTL Agency 2021 at Brandcom Awards 2021 while Odedina was awarded the Most Outstanding Experiential Marketing Personality in 2021 amongst many others.

  • Bringing Efficiency to Credit Risk Management process using FinTrak Credit 360 Software

    Bringing Efficiency to Credit Risk Management process using FinTrak Credit 360 Software

    Fintrak Software Limited, Nigeria’s foremost indigenous financial technology (Fintech) solution provider with a physical presence in some African countries recently brought the banking and financial industry stakeholders together to update them on their robust Credit Risk Management solution known as FinTrak Credit Risk 360. The industry experts applauded the software as a robust indigenous solution for banks in Africa.

    Speaking during the presentation, the Group Managing Director, Bimbo Abioye stated that “FinTrak software delivers customized state of the art business transformation solutions that can intelligently combine efficiency with critical information needed for management decision-making process. FinTrak Credit 360 software has been able to improve user bank’s overall operational efficiency by over forty percent through automated strategic and digitized policy controls”

    In order to limit human error to the barest minimum, Credit 360 solution comes with artificial intelligence (AI) features. This feature can be used to work on corporate, retail and digital lending programs and the goal is to provide visibility and control of loan processes and to digitalize it, this is from customer interaction to the complete life cycle of a typical credit transaction. The solution is integrated with robust document management system providing capability for operators to work remotely even on their mobile devices. The Credit 360 software for credit managers is mobile friendly for optimized transaction turnaround times with paperless transaction capabilities. The software has been proven to make loan underwriting easier and seamless.

    Coming in two major languages, English and French, the new Credit 360 software has been described as an industry leader and benchmark, a testament of what FinTrak Software Co. Ltd can create. With its ability to be customized to fit into the organization environment. The FinTrak Credit Risk360 has the capacity to adapt to client’s specific requirements via an intuitive graphical administration platform based on the business and compliance rules management system.  Another unique attribute of the software is the Dynamic Alert and Notification Module in system popup, email and SMS formats. This feature helps in optimizing compliance monitoring, reporting and transparency.

    With a high level of integration with other banking systems, the system requires no manual postings and update activities on the core banking system and data exchanges happen between the two systems via API, Fintrak Credit 360 risk management software supports all operational/analytical credit risk management processes such as reporting, annual, monthly, weekly financial statement analysis and rating; on a central platform. The Credit 360 risk management software is a complete solution on its own. The FinTrak Credit Risk 360 supports registration and interaction with accredited vendors, allowing auto payment to solicitors, the capture of remedial and recovery efforts, auto-selection and assignment of recoveries to external agencies, and loan sales.

    With a multi-lingual approach basically in English and French, the software tracks everything relating to business subjects and people. The platform is written to do dynamic underwriting, loan management and analyst rating that can be embedded in dynamic approval routing. FinTrak Credit Risk 360 ensures maximum auditability for model administration as well as during the operational execution of processes such as risk rating and financial spreading. Other features of the solution include Robust Collateral Management Module for Collateral sharing, Utilization history and exposure, Multiple contract allocation, Collateral swap, Location tracking, Collateral rating, Collateral Valuation, Collateral realization, Collateral document file tracking, Covenants tracking and many more.

    Top bankers such as Olamide Olayeni, a Credit Manager from Standard Chartered Bank said that “The solution from the presentation is a robust and one-shop platform, and the feedback from what banks and users are saying confirms that it is what every bank needs to look at. I will get back to my organization and engage them on the need to look at the Credit Risk 360 software. It is a one-stop solution as opposed to other software where you can have things subscribed differently.” Jafaru, the head of Credit and Risk Management, Bank of Industry (BOI) said that “this is a great privilege to be here and see what this software is doing. We have been doing some of these things manually and we have now extended the invitation to the company so that they can come to our office and explain this better to us. We are impressed with the software. The credit monitoring software has many features that are great, the issue of alert that helps managers to monitor instruments. “

    Paul Asiemo, Head, Risk Management for Access Bank also said that “the software takes care of Bassel, this software looks at regulating reporting and others, there are specific things that this software does that sets it apart from others. We have been FinTrak Software solutions in our bank for over fifteen years ago and we are impressed with what they have done. Using Credit Risk 360 software in Access Bank has shown how flexible the software is.  The software insulates you from many documentation issues such including forex issues associated with foreign software purchases etc.  The Credit Risk 360 software is very adaptable and can be changed to fit into your banking environment.

    FinTrak Credit Risk 360 has an embedded Enterprise Document Management System which can be used to receive, track and manage and audit documents; it also supports correspondence with third parties’ applications. With its web functionalities, Credit Origination and Approval activities can be done from anywhere in the world with connection to the internet. This feature helps executives make critical decisions, execute transactions and access reports and dashboard from any geographical location.

    FinTrak Credit Risk 360 software has been deployed in some large financial institutions such as Access Bank Plc, First Bank and is currently in deployment at Wema Bank Plc and all overseas subsidiaries of Access Bank Group. So many others banks in Africa are currently at different stages of licensing decisions of this highly strategic solution that burst all headaches facing professionals in credit risk management activities.

  • LiveBIc Clinches First Prize at MarkHack 1.0

    LiveBIc Clinches First Prize at MarkHack 1.0

    …as Eko Innovation Centre and GDM Group call for Technological Innovation to Disrupt Marketing Landscape

    In what has proven to be game changing and a first-of-its-kind in the Nigerian media and marketing space, winning innovations have emerged at the grand finale of the maiden edition of Nigeria’s first marketing and media Hackathon tagged ‘MarkHack 1.0’ organized by the Eko Innovation Centre in collaboration with GDM Group. 

    LiveBIc, which comprised Shadrach Akao and Ernest Ogbanefe emerged the overall winners from a list of 10 finalists involved in the pitch at the finals of the hackathon. LiveBIc won the star prize of $10,000 for developing a new platform for content creators to market and deliver their content.

    Sprayme clinched the second position and $4,000 prize money for innovating a new way for social gifting and content monetization; Reelbuzz emerged the third winner with $3,000 for creating an intuitive platform that helps brands connect and command higher brand loyalty; Innovatoras took the fourth position as well as $2,000 prize money for directing the leads for businesses and turning them to paying customers and Monify Cookies, fifth position with $1,000 for developing a browser tool that provides its users the ability to block all unsolicited ads and earn money from allowed ads.

    The winners and runners-up will also get working space at Eko Innovation Centre, while all ten (10) finalists will have access to join the EIC accelerator program and GITEX Global pitch event in Dubai. 

    Recall, that the best 10 teams with the most viable concepts went head-to-head at the finale for the $20,000 prize pool and an acceleration programme with up to $50K equity investment to get their products ready for the market among other benefits.

    Speaking on the initiative and what inspired it, Victor Afolabi, Founder, of Eko Innovation Centre, and Curator MarkHack 1.0 said, MarkHack 1.0 is a gathering of innovators, entrepreneurs, Policy makers, and Marketing Professionals, to create solutions to real-life Marketing challenges in an intense period of time. Using creativity, technology, and mentoring, resulting in prototypes, fresh new concepts, and innovative usages of tech for Marketing and Media. 

    He added that “Seeing how technology has disrupted global industries all over the world, we perceived that the marketing and media industry was ripe for disruption. However, they are two things, it is either we collaborate with stakeholders in the industry to create the disruption we anticipate or we allow disruption to happen to us, and we choose to do the former.”

    “The former involves working with over 100 organisations and representatives from the various organisations to co-create together and disrupt that which we anticipate. That co-creation gave birth to what we call MarkHack. We brought together experts in the industry across sectorial groups from clients, agencies, professionals, technology experts, venture capitalists, policy makers, regulators and we all came together to come to create the MarkHack,” he said.

    On his part, Hakeem Popoola Fahm, Commissioner of Science and Technology, Lagos State applauded the organizers for the laudable initiative and stated that it is a testament to the success of Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s commitment to making Lagos a smart city by digitalizing its operations and providing an enabling environment for technology innovations to be given birth to. He added that MarkHack 1.0 has shown that Marketers and media practitioners can digitalize operations and the state government would continue to support the ecosystem. 

    Similarly, the Special Adviser, Innovation and Technology to the Governor of Lagos State, Tubosun Alake said the government has been supporting various research works through Lagos State Science Research and Innovation Council (LASRIC) across multiple industries including the marketing industry and it won’t rest on its oars in actualizing the smart city agenda of the present administration. 

    Earlier in the programme, the President of the National Institute of Marketing of Nigeria (NIMN), Idorenyen Enang while delivering his keynote address at the event urged marketers to continue to innovate, and know how to use their channels effectively. He had also emphasized that marketing is not merely about integrated marketing communication, adding that innovators require to follow laid-down principles of marketing. 

    Similarly, in a fireside chat, Franklin Ozekhome, CEO & Head of Growth, Identiture Africa; Seyi Tinubu, CEO/Chairman, Loatsad Promomedia; and Muyiwa Aleshinloye, Head of Marketing, Wakanow called on marketers to take advantage of technology to grow their brands as Metaverse, Artificial Intelligence, and others are being deployed to ease business operations. 

    The organizers of the event, Eko Innovation Centre and GDM Group revealed that over 500 individuals registered to participate in the hackathon from 72 locations, 5 countries (which includes Nigeria, California- USA, Kenya, Pakistan, and London), and 3 continents (Africa, Europe, and North America). 

    The participants were split into teams of 5 and were required to work together for 3 weeks, brainstorm, and come up with new concepts based on their areas of focus. They were also sub-grouped into 8 focus areas which include consumer experience, media consumption, consumer recruitment & interaction, trade & retail engagement, analytics and metrics, events marketing, media monetization, and content creation.

    Each team pitched their ideas to a respected Jury of experts in the subject matter, and the best 10 teams were picked by the Jurors before only five emerged winners at the grand finale. Overall, the hackathon had 21 Mentors, 30 Selection Jurors, 8 Speakers, and 8 Final Jurors who partook in the event and are the industry’s best with decades of experience in marketing, media, technology, and business management, and others.

    The winners were judged by professionals which include Steve Babaeko, CEO/Chief Creative Officer, X3M Ideas & President, Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria; Iquo Ukoh, Director, Board of Directors, Letshego Microfinance Bank Ltd; Uwem Uwemakpan, Cofounder of Ingressive Capital; Tolulope Tomori Adedeji, Marketing Director, Anheuser-Busch InBev; and Debola Williams, Group CEO at Red Africa. 

    Others are Joseph Agunbiade, Cofounder, BudgIt; Kayode Oladapo, Assistant Regional Manager for Zone AOA (Africa, Oceania, and Asia), Nestle; and Jide Sipe, Head, Marketing and Corporate Communication, Ecobank Nigeria. 

  • 5G will revolutionise Nigeria’s Creative Industry – Danbatta

    5G will revolutionise Nigeria’s Creative Industry – Danbatta

    …as NCC receives Best Agency Award for development

    The current efforts of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to facilitate the deployment of the Fifth Generation (5G) technology will further catalyse the innovativeness and creativity of the entertainment industry in Nigeria and raise its productivity and contribution to the gross domestic product (GDP) to new levels. The Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NCC, Prof. Umar Danbatta, has said.

    Danbatta, stated this in a keynote address delivered at the Nollywood Economic Outlook (NEO 2022) organised in Lagos recently and well-attended by Nollywood personalities and other critical stakeholders in the creative industry.

    The organisers of the NEO 2022 forum also presented the Award of “Best Agency in Government Sustainable and Development Agenda” to the Commission for its role in facilitating digital connectivity to fast-track Nigeria’s economic growth as well as accelerate the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in Nigeria.

    Speaking on the theme: “Leveraging 5G Technology for the Advancement of Creative Industry,” Danbatta, who was represented by the NCC’s Head of Media and Public Relations, Grace Ojougboh, said 5G technology will disrupt the media business models in the creative industry just as he emphasised that need for practitioners in the creative industry to leverage the power of 5G technology to expand the frontiers of the industry for the next phase of its growth.

    “The 5G will revolutionize how content is produced, distributed, and consumed, unlocking existing technologies for wider audiences and enabling a new wave of applications. It will also enable broadcasters to transmit footage back to their base within a short period of time, thus creating more coverage opportunities,” Danbatta said.

    He explained that 5G technology networks will transform businesses leading to higher productivity improvements via the real-time flow of information. “Consequently, this will permit the optimization of business functions and creation of new value chains for customers through advances in Internet-based web technology and search engines.

    This is expected to lead to the development and pervasiveness of Over-the-top (OTT) services,” he said. Danbatta further stated that running 5G network, over-the-top (OTT) platforms and applications will also offer video content over the internet as against the traditional cable or satellite television. This, he said, was because technologies enabled by 5G will utilize novel and innovative channels to enhance the experience of viewers. “So, for the creative industry, 5G will also enable the delivery of high-quality content direct to consumers by the broadcast industry at the touch of a button. Accordingly, it will offer users a seamless experience when they stream videos on mobile devices (Smartphones and tablets) and web televisions that use solutions such as Chromecast, Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV, as well as Smart TVs,” the EVC said.

    Danbatta told the audience that as demands for high-quality content and streaming increase, 5G connectivity presents the perfect opportunity to push the OTT viewer experience to the next level. He said with super-fast 5G download speeds up to 10 times faster than the current networks and, therefore, lower latency that will improve viewers’ experience of video on demand and make them to enjoy highly reliable services.

    The 5G technology will allow the creative industry to better understand future requirements, explore new creative formats, build new mobile video capabilities, pursue strategic partnerships, and assess their data collection practices and database requirements.

    “Information and Communications Technology has already made the world a global village due to its ubiquitous connection to remote locations across the globe. The 5G technology capabilities will make the world even smaller, thus enabling easy distribution of content across the globe in real-time,” he stated.

    Danbatta concluded by stating that 5G technology is set to redefine the way people live and work and will usher in the much-talked-about Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) with its promise of rapid social and economic development of the country.

    Danbatta used the opportunity of the event to intimate the audience with the policy and regulatory efforts of the government, through the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy as well as the NCC, which have culminated in the licensing of spectrum resources for the deployment of 5G network in the country.He asserted that disruptive innovations shaping the future of the world, such as- Mobile Broadband, Internet of Things, Cloud Computing, Autonomous and Near-Autonomous Vehicles, Artificial Intelligence, Augmented Reality, Block-Chain Technology, Robotics and Quantum Computing and more, are pivoted on telecommunications, especially the 5G technology.

    Earlier, the Host of the programme and Executive Secretary, Board of Trustees of Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Sunny McDon, said there had been all sorts of predictions about the introduction of 5G technology and the sheer number of devices that will become connected through its introduction in Nigeria. He, therefore, advocated a focus on the impact on the creative industry, businesses, and Nigeria’s socio-economic development. The Lagos State Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Mrs. Uzamat Akinbile-Yussuf, who was represented at the event by Mr. Idowu Johnson, spoke on “Imperatives for Building Lasting Structures for the Sustenance of the Creative Industry.”

    seamless experience when they stream videos on mobile devices (Smartphones and tablets) and web televisions that use solutions such as Chromecast, Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV, as well as Smart TVs,” the EVC said.Danbatta told the audience that as demands for high-quality content and streaming increase, 5G connectivity presents the perfect opportunity to push the OTT viewer experience to the next level. He said with super-fast 5G download speeds up to 10 times faster than the current networks and therefore, lower latency that will improve viewers experience of video on demand and make them to enjoy highly reliable services.

    The 5G technology will allow the creative industry to better understand future requirements, explore new creative formats, build new mobile video capabilities, pursue strategic partnerships, and assess their data collection practices and database requirements. “Information and Communications Technology has already made the world a global village due to its ubiquitous connection to remote locations across the globe. The 5G technology capabilities will make the world even smaller, thus enabling easy distribution of content across the globe in real time,” he stated.Danbatta concluded by stating that 5G technology is set to redefine the way people live and work and will usher the much-talked-about Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) with its promise of a rapid social and economic development of the country.Danbatta used the opportunity of the event to intimate the audience of the policy and regulatory efforts of the government, through the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy as well as the NCC, which have culminated in the licensing of spectrum resources for the deployment of 5G network in the country.He asserted that disruptive innovations shaping the future of the world, such as; Mobile Broadband, Internet of Things, Cloud Computing, Autonomous and Near-Autonomous Vehicles, Artificial Intelligence, Augmented Reality, Block-Chain Technology, Robotics and Quantum Computing and more, are pivoted on telecommunications, especially the 5G technology. Earlier, the Host of the programme and Executive Secretary, Board of Trustees of Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Sunny McDon , said there had been all sorts of predictions about the introduction of 5G technology and the sheer number of devices that will become connected through its introduction in Nigeria. He therefore advocated a focus on the impact on the creative industry, businesses and Nigeria’s socio-economic development.The Lagos State Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Mrs. Uzamat Akinbile-Yussuf, who was represented at the event by Mr. Idowu Johnson, spoke on “Imperatives for Building Lasting Structures for the Sustenance of the Creative Industry.”

  • To live successfully in the Future embrace ICT – Danbatta

    To live successfully in the Future embrace ICT – Danbatta

    Reckoning that 70 percent of the new value to be created in the economy over the next decades will be based on digitally-enabled platform business models, the Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has stated unequivocally that it is focused on implementing all sectoral interventions focused on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) youth empowerment. Prof. Umar Danbatta.

    Danbatta made this declaration while delivering the 10th and 11th combined Convocation Lecture of Fountain University, Osogbo, Osun State. He asserted that the resolve of the Commission to pursue very vigorously a bouquet of ICT programmes focused on the youth is based on the projected opportunity for the youth in the emerging ICT-based labour market.


    Danbatta recalled that statistics from Global System for Mobile Communication Association (GSMA) and the World Economic Forum (WEF), have indicated that unique mobile subscriptions are expected to grow up to 5.7 billion by 2025 with concurrent growth in Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) connections, and Internet subscriptions and corresponding growth in operators’ revenue and investment.


    The CEO of NCC also said that fourth-generation (4G) connections are expected to grow to 57 percent; Fifth Generation (5G) is also envisaged to have 1.8 billion connections; usage of smartphones are projected to grow to 81 percent; Internet of Things (IoT) will grow from 13.1 billion to 24 billion connections; and contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by the mobile industry is expected to grow by, at least, 5.1 percent by 2025.


    The implications of the foregoing, according to Danbatta, are a huge, incredible opportunity for youth to own businesses.
    “Therefore, while NCC is working collaboratively and strategically with its supervising ministry, Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, it is also working with young Nigerians to prepare them for harnessing these opportunities for personal and national prosperity. It is this huge prospect that informed NCC to institute a number of initiatives and interventions targeting the youth in a unique and unprecedented institutionalization of strategic collaboration and partnership,” he said.


    The programmes, according to Danbatta, include the ICT Hubs Support and Engagement, which is a forum that brings together key players, actors and the youths in the Nigerian tech-ecosystem to deliberate and suggest policy framework and strategies that could further develop the sector to catalyze improved local content in the ICT/telecommunications sector.


    There is also the annual ICT Innovation Competition and Exhibition aimed at facilitating sustainable digital start-ups’ development through a platform to showcase their digital innovative solutions.


    Also, the Annual Hackathon is designed to challenge start-ups and tech hubs in Nigeria to produce impactful and sustainable innovative solutions that will address common societal challenges using digital technologies.


    Danbatta said the ICT Park Project is being built across the six geo-political zones of the country to boost digital skills among young people, promote innovation, provide jobs for young Nigerian and ultimately support the Federal Government Digital Agenda is equally a strategic programme focused on harnessing and optimising the youths’ creative energy for development.


    Other related projects in this regard include the NCC National Essay Competition engaging undergraduates in Nigerian tertiary institution to explore and enhance research in tertiary institutions and build capacity.


    In addition, the school support programmes which include the Digital Awareness Programme (DAP), a special intervention initiated as a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) project in response to the digital information knowledge gap observed in the country; as well as the Advanced Digital Appreciation Programme for Tertiary Institutions (ADAPTI), instituted to bridge the knowledge skill gap in higher institutions of learning, largely target the youth and students.


    Accordingly, Danbatta called on the youth to consciously take note of emergent segments in ICT that are available for them to explore. These, according to him, include Blockchain, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Cloud computing, Internet of Things (IoT) and Big Data.


    He also enjoined youths and students to pay attention not only to any of those technology segments but also their overlapping variables such as hyper-connectivity, supercomputing, cybersecurity, and a smarter world such as robotics, 3D printing, and sensors – which are at the heart of the circular economy.


    In recognition of the innovative minds of Nigeria’s huge youth population, Danbatta said the NCC had put all the ICT youth empowerment initiatives to support a digitally-skilled workforce that will fit into the Digital Economy Project of Nigeria. “The Commission is committed to fostering partnership and collaboration with the technology hubs and startups, to accelerate innovations and the creation of a digitally-skilled workforce for industrial growth and sustainable development of the nation,” the EVC said.

  • Fintech 5.0: Evaluating How FirstBank Strengthens Collaboration

    Fintech 5.0: Evaluating How FirstBank Strengthens Collaboration

    …To drive financial inclusion

    It was Sir Isaac Newton, in his letter to Robert Hooke in 1675, who wrote the now-famous quote: “If I have seen further (than others), it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.”

    The shoulders of giants Sir Newton referred to has to do with leverage provided by the discoveries and experiences of people who have gone before or walked that same path earlier, that pave the way for and enable other people and a new generation to take things to a totally new dimension.

    The truth is, giants whose shoulders provide such leverage to the next generation can be found in various fields and various nations. In Nigeria, for example, such giants exist in various fields and they are known and recognised.

    Take the fintech (financial technology) space in Nigeria, where one bank is known to have stood as a giant with very broad shoulders, having capacities that have been built up and accumulated over 127 continuous years. Every year since 2016 (apart from 2017 when it was implementing ideas from 2016, including a Digital Innovation Lab), this well-recognised bank has provided a platform for the most robust engagement of the fintech industry in Nigeria. Tagged Fintech Summit, the annual engagement has continued to help in catalysing the fintech sector to ever-higher levels from year to year.

    Held in Lagos the commercial capital of Nigeria and arguably the fintech capital of Africa, given Nigeria’s status as the leading nation in the fintech space in Africa, the annual FirstBank Fintech Summit has attracted an average of a thousand participants, who are mostly fintech owners, workers and enthusiasts, yearly. Last year’s Summit, Fintech Summit 4.0 with the theme

    “How Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence will Disrupt Fintech in Nigeria”, however, drew an unprecedented number of participants – over 6,000 from across 52 different countries. It was the first virtual Summit due to the restrictions imposed because of the COVID-19 pandemic and it featured as keynote speaker Silicon Valley-based innovator of international repute, Chinedu Echeruo, who founded HopStop that was later sold to Apple for US$1 billion. Imagine the inspiration, dreams and aspirations young people soak up while listening to speakers with such a profile.

    Far from being one-directional – with all the talk flowing from only the speaker to the audience – the yearly Summit is actually a platform for multidimensional engagement involving various stakeholders in the fintech industry – operators, regulators, investors, enthusiasts, fintech journalists and writers, bankers, et cetera.

    It offers an unequalled opportunity for networking among fintech and other stakeholders, leading to opportunities for collaboration within the community. For small businesses and start-ups powered by FirstBank’s support, the annual Summit has been a veritable platform for showcasing them. The platform has also served for the announcement of policy initiatives coupled with pronouncements that provide clarifications to policy. This is due to invitations extended to regulators and the important role they are assigned in conversations facilitated during the Summit.

    The Summit that preceded last year’s, i.e., the third edition of Fintech Summit 3.0 held in 2019, featured another heavyweight in Nigeria’s fintech industry, Victor Asemota, founder of Swifta Systems & Services, as keynote speaker. The theme “Banking + Tech = Solving Real Problems”, included panel sessions featuring experts with over two hundred combined years of experience in both the financial and technological industries.

    They applied their knowledge, expertise and experience to address challenges in the technologically-driven business world, structured in terms of Solving Business Problems; Solving Regulatory, Security and Legal Problems; and Solving Lifestyle Problems. At the end of the Summit, participants must have felt that the Summit delivered on the confidence the Chief Executive Officer of FirstBank, Adesola Adeduntan, had expressed when he remarked in his welcome address, “I am optimistic that every organisation represented here will be empowered to provide services with greater speed and solve real societal problems to the advantage of the Nigerian populace through the insights that will be gained from this event.“

    Fintech Summit 3.0 had built on the success of the second edition, Fintech Summit 2.0 held in 2018, which had “The Future of Banking – The Role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Big Data” as a theme. Adia Sowho, the Managing Director of Mines in Nigeria, had, as the first keynote speaker, stressed the importance of collaboration between legacy banks and fintechs in the overall good of their shared financial services space. The Deputy Managing Director of FirstBank, Gbenga Shobo, had, in his welcome address, said that FirstBank was committed to finding the right balance in its approach in supporting the budding fintech industry. It is gratifying that the bank has since found that right balance and pushed ahead enthusiastically with the continual annual engagement that is its yearly Fintech Summit.

    For those who like to bring up the argument that deposit money banks (DMBs) and fintech are rivals competing in the same space for the same customers and wonder why FirstBank, a leading deposit money bank, would itself be involved in efforts to catalyse the fintech industry, they need to wake up and smell the coffee. FirstBank is continuously evolving and staying on the cutting edge of technology in order to better serve its customers, who are themselves evolving and adapting to newer and more efficient and convenient technologies as they become available.

    And FirstBank is on a journey to a future where it is happy, in the spirit of the African tradition of Ubuntu, to take all fintech along with it. In the words of another famous quote, “The sky is too big for two [or many] big birds flying in it to collide.” FirstBank believes there is ample room for all players – deposit money banks, fintech, et cetera – to fulfil their unique roles. Therefore, collaboration, not competition, is FirstBank’s watchword. And FirstBank considers fintech partners in progress in its avowed commitment to driving financial inclusion.

    FirstBank’s own evolution and the transition is causing some people to question its continuous classification by the Central Bank as a deposit money bank (with a preponderance of bricks-and-mortar banking operations) rather than a digital bank. And the reasons for their argument cannot be easily waved aside. In 2020, for example, over 85 percent of the banking transactions that were required by customers of FirstBank were performed on the bank’s self-service channels.

    That means customers of the bank only needed the attention of the bank’s staff or branches for just 15 percent of all the banking transactions they required in 2020. There are now as many as over 16 million customers between FirstBank’s digital channels of online banking (called FirstOnline), mobile banking (christened FirstMobile) and USSD banking (called *894# quick banking).

    Between FirstOnline and FirstMobile, a growth of 21 per cent in the user base was experienced in 2020. Customers on both platforms conducted approximately 256 million transactions worth N15.7 trillion in the same year. FirstOnline, as of June 2021, had an impressive 597,466 customers on the service, a 17 per cent growth on the previous year and 578,292 transactions per month, averaging a value of N388 billion per month.

    For FirstMobile, besides the impressive gain in numbers, it gained recognition as “Best Mobile Banking App” at the Global Finance Best Digital Bank Awards, for providing excellent self-service through its user-friendly app. FirstMobile had, as of June 2021, 4,596,203 users on the platform, which is a nine per cent growth on the previous year and an average of 27,730,830 transactions every month. While these numbers point to the giant statue of the bank, none of it excites FirstBank as much as Firstmonie, because of its invaluable role in driving financial inclusion at the grassroots level, one of FirstBank’s overriding commitments.

    Firstmonie, the agent banking network of FirstBank, currently has over 130,000 agents across the country, making it the largest bank-led agent network anywhere in Africa. As the foremost financial inclusion service in the country, it has achieved over 750 million transactions worth N15 trillion (about US$30 billion) processed from inception to date.

    Over 295 million of those transactions with a total value of N6.65 trillion were processed in 2020 alone – the same year COVID-19 caused widespread disruptions across the globe. Firstmonie agency banking scheme has empowered agents across all Local Government Areas in the country, providing employment to thousands of people.

    FirstBank through the Firstmonie platform further supports the fintech industry via partnership collaborations with local and international fintechs. All these are geared towards expanding financial inclusion and providing a variety of services to customers of the bank with giant shoulders that customers and fintechs can stand on to see further.

    As for Sir Isaac Newton, the giant of a scientist whose famous quote began this piece, if he could read us from the grave, he would feel very proud today to see that celebrated line from his 1675 letter being aptly used to represent the relationship that exists between the broad, energetic and dynamic shoulders of Nigeria’s banking behemoth, FirstBank, and the rapidly emerging beautiful bride of Nigeria’s economic sectors, the fintech industry. This relationship climaxes every year in the annual Fintech Summit and the forthcoming Fintech Summit 5.0 promises to take the relationship to a whole new dimension.

    Culled from BusinessDay

  • Dell Technologies Emerging Africa Forum to Showcase the Power of Transformative Technologies

    Dell Technologies Emerging Africa Forum to Showcase the Power of Transformative Technologies

    With digital transformation being a key priority for businesses and government across East, West and Central Africa, Dell Technologies has reinforced its commitment to providing its customers with advanced technologies that drive business continuity and growth.

    Dell Technologies Forum Emerging Africa takes place on October 6, 2021 and will bring together business leaders and industry experts, to share their insights on how technology can help shape the future success of businesses.

    The event will also serve as a platform for Dell Technologies to showcase its ground-breaking portfolio of enterprise and consumer solutions that accelerate the digital delivery of modern IT services that can differentiate a business, its products, and operations.

    Mohammed Amin, Sr. Vice President – MERAT will lead the keynote session. He will cover topics related to the acceleration of digital transformation and how organizations can build resilience and agility. It will also feature high-level speakers and CXOs who will share their knowledge on how digital technologies can enhance business productivity and profitability, enabling them to be at the forefront of innovation.

    The informative sessions will also examine how organizations across Emerging Africa can prepare for the digital future and drive business success through technologies such as hybrid cloud, edge, 5G, AI/ML, data management and security.

    Habib Mahakian, Vice President – Emerging Africa, Dell Technologies said: “Our primary focus is to help organizations accelerate socio-economic and business transformation initiatives with speed and purpose as we work together to power the innovation agenda of countries across Emerging Africa. The pandemic showed us the positive impact that digital technologies can have on accelerating growth so it’s important that organisations continue to develop their IT infrastructure to compete in a hyper-digital world.”

    In addition, as the future concept becomes a reality for organizations, employees demand the flexibility to work, collaborate and innovate anytime, anywhere and in any way they want. By working closely with customers from sectors such as government, financial services, oil and gas, healthcare and education, Dell Technologies works closely with customer across Emerging Africa to help them harness the power of technology to drive long term business growth.

  • 9mobile Trains Journalists on AI-powered Journalism in 3rd Edition of Capacity Building Session

    9mobile Trains Journalists on AI-powered Journalism in 3rd Edition of Capacity Building Session

    9mobile has taken its knowledge sharing session for media partners, a notch higher, in the third edition of its capacity building initiative, designed to acquaint journalists with emerging trends in journalism.

    Themed, “Responding to Emerging Challenges in Journalism with the use of AI-powered tools”, the session was facilitated by experienced multimedia producer and social media strategist, Usifo Omozokpea, who is currently the Audience Development Manager (West Africa) at The Conversation Africa.

    According to Omozokpea, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the simulation of human intelligence process or human activities through machines, especially computer systems. He noted that there are specific applications of AI which include expert systems, natural language processing, speech recognition, and machine vision. These tools he said, enhance the job of media practitioners and can help them collaborate better.

    According to him, there are various tools that have been designed to address specific media needs. He urged participants to take advantage of the various AI tools at their disposal to improve their professional practice.

    Speaking on the session, the Executive Director, Regulatory and Corporate Affairs, 9mobile, Abdulrahman Ado, represented by 9mobile’s PR Lead, Chineze Amanfo, said that the knowledge shared during the training session has proven to be useful to all participants. “This clearly shows that learning is a continuum in order to stay relevant as media practitioners in this emerging Artificial Intelligence (AI) era. The need to consistently upscale skill-set in terms of modern technological tools remains crucial,” she said.

    Amanfo noted that the knowledge gained by participants during the training will obviously aid them to work smarter and even create room for intelligent collaboration with their colleagues in a seamless and professional manner. She thanked everyone for attending saying the session.