PIWA, IDRC team up on ICT liberalisation

REMMY NWEKE,
just back from Senegal

The Panos Institute for West Africa (PIWA) under its Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Programme of CIPACO in scientific collaboration with the Senegalese-based Consortium pour la Recherche Economique et Sociale (CRES), has launched a 24-month project on the international liberalization of trade in ICT services in West African sub-region.

The project tagged LICOM is funded by International Development Research Center (IDRC), with the mandate to examine the challenges of the private sector and implications for the implementation of public policies in four members of the Economic Community of West Africa (ECOWAS).

Project coordinator at PIWA, Mr. Ken Lohento told Champion Infotel at the inaugural workshop of the participating institutions drawn from the four countries, namely Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal and Benin, that the partnering institutions in the LICOM project include Benin-based Centre d’Etudies, de Formation et de Recherche en Development (CEFRED); Senegalese CRES, Ghanaian Science and Technology Policy Research Institute (STEPRI/CSIR); as well as Nigeria’s University of Lagos (UNILAG).

He said that the inaugural workshop which just ended in Toubab Dialaw, Senegal, was to enable participating countries, institutions and key stakeholders to better understand the project methodology.

Mr. Lohento accompanied by the IDRC Programme Specialist for the region, Mr. Alioune Camara, said explored the “Uses and Policies of Digital Technology” under PIWA ICT programme to better proffer understanding of the challenges and implementation conditions of trade liberalization in ICT services, in the region and chart new strategies for public action.

“National and regional issues conditioning efficient liberalization for the benefit of regional private sector and of the whole society were studied as well as the adoption and implementation of international agreements, particularly the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS),” he said.

The impact of the aforementioned on the economy of the targeted countries on the private sector, will also be investigated as part of the project.

Explaining further, Lohento said that the meeting exchanged ideas across the participating countries so as to find a harmonizing ground for the project’s stakeholders understanding about its objectives and expected results.

In addition, finalizing notes were made on the research methodology to be carried out, exchanging on the project’s practical details regarding coordination encompassing administrative and logistic issues.

The workshop attended by over 20 stakeholders included the Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) represented through the Information Technology Industry Association of Nigeria (ITAN) and chief executive of Programos Software, Mr. Emmanuel Amos, alongside project national research teams, experts from key nations and regional organizations.

PIWA, a regional Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), with headquarters in Senegal, has been focusing on building a democratic space for communication and social change in the sub-region.


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Programos eyes ISO, Ghana market

Plans are in top gear for the Nigeria’s emerging leader in financial software development, Programos Software Limited, to enter into the Ghanaian’s stock market, even as it repositions for the International Standards Organisation (ISO) certification.

ISO is a series of documents that define requirements for the quality management system standard.

Disclosing this to Champion Infotel exclusively at the end of weeklong workshop on liberalization of Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) services in West Africa held in Senegal, the chief executive officer, Programos, Mr. Amos Emmanuel, said that efforts are geared towards making the move a success.

Champion Infotel checks revealed that already, Programos is making grounded plans to have stock market operatives in the gold country intact so as to make the move very easy.

Mr. Amos also disclosed that Programos would soon come up with French versions of his company’s offer; Integra 2000+ and Integra.Webstone.

He said for instance that the recently launched Integra.Webstone is an innovative software that addresses internet stockbroking activities, which has become a household name in Nigeria and would be of exceptional benefits to stockbrokers in the region.

He also said that a technology such as Integra.Webstone is a proudly Made in Nigeria tool for global business entities and could be deployed to further reduce the physical traffic of players at the market place.

“This would further boost the capital market transparency and enhance upright and proactiveness among dealers and improve more confidence in the minds of local and foreign investors,” he explained.

According to Emmanuel, Programos Software Limited, is a leading indigenous developer of software for financial institutions, capital market and stock broking firms in West African sub-region, even as the company recently began repositioning to facilitate its entrance in other markets in the sub-region.

This, he said, include the processes for its readiness for the International Standards Organisation (ISO) quality certification commonly known as ISO.

The certification, he stressed has become necessary to appropriately position Programos for the global market commencing with expanding its horizon in West Africa.

ISO, he pointed out, provides a framework and systematic approach to managing business processes to produce a product or service that conforms to the international customer expectations.

“The certification of suppliers on ISO standards means that they could be assured that the development of their products and services comply to reference the internationally accepted documents,” he said.

He said that the benefits of becoming certified are numerous, but principally, to improve business processes and save money.

Emmanuel said that his firm is recruiting a new team of professionals to add to its current workforce and even increased its share capital to N50m from the N500,000 hitherto, as well as being on the look out for new partners in Nigeria and abroad.

Currently, he said, Programos offers custom software development, web development and ICT management training services in both English and French.


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Nigeria achieves 10,000 km fibre optic

Nigeria has achieved an estimated 10,000 kilometre worth of fibre optic across the country.

Chief executive officer, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), gave this insight at the just ended Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) exhibition and conferences, ComBIT 2008, organised by the umbrella body of ICT companies in Nigeria, the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) in Lagos.

According to Ndukwe, Nigeria now has about 10,000 kilometre optics fibre deployment so far across the country, which he said is very significant when the impacts of these are felt among the networks.

While emphasizing on the issue of infrastructure sharing, which he said was not negotiable among the operators since NCC would ensure that whatever infrastructure available on ground would be fully utilized by all the operators to facilitate the provision of wide spread of services and improved quality of service (QoS) across the networks.

Ndukwe disclosed that presently NCC is pushing for provision of subsidy for private companies who would deploy services in the North West and North Eastern parts of the country.

These areas, he said, are yet to have substantial deployment.

"To ensure the provision of the needed optics fibre infrastructure to make certain the connectivity of the entire nation is achieved in due time," he asserted.

In addition, he said that stakeholders expectations in the industry is very high, and reiterated that the Commission would still consider the issues of quality of services, promising that a new set of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), would soon be published by the Commission to provide more strict conditions on the quality of service expectations.

He pointed out that the provision of reliable power supply is central to the generation and provision of more employment in the country as well as the provision of telecom services.

He noted that small scale industries which could generate the highest number of employments in the country are fully dependent on power supply, while the telecom industry is still up to 35 per cent dependent on power supply.

Operating companies, he said, must do whatever they need to do to provide reliable services to their customers even if that means providing alternative sources of energy to achieve that.

"We at NCC will continue to monitor them to ensure that they continue to work hard to achieve acceptable quality of service", Ndukwe said, just as he announced the intention of NCC to soon release a Code of Practice Regulation (CPR), which would empower the subscriber to understand his rights on one side, and the obligations of the operators to him, on the other hand, in the provision of phone services in the country.

Describing telecommunications as a very important enabler of development, he reiterated NCC determination to put all efforts in place to ensure the spread of ICT all over the country.


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A mobile TV in your pocket

When you are determined to make an early morning appointment these days, you reach for your mobile phone and activate its alarm feature. As sure as heaven and earth, the device will wake you up at the desired time; some will do this even when they remain switched off.

And from the time you wake up till the time you return to your home, this device remains your guide, telling you how late you are running via its clock functions, telling you where you are in unfamiliar environments via its cell broadcast features and serving as a tool to ask for directions to get to where you are going.

So valuable has the mobile phone become that most modern men and women would feel both lost and naked should they be separated from their mobiles. Indeed many office workers hard pressed for time to resume work on time in the morning would think nothing of turning right back home from whichever point they have reached should they discover that they have left their phones behind in their rush. It is not for nothing. For some of them, the success of what they are to do in the office is dependent on their mobile phones.

The phone holds all their contacts of business associates’, colleagues’, clients’, prospects’, everything is on the phone. Nothing, not even one’s spouse’s number is committed to memory any longer. Everything is on the phone, and retrievable with a few clicks, and with some phones, a single click called short-dial code.

It is your calculator when you need to do quick sums of sales figures being reeled out at a presentation, your music box for the soft tunes you need to work at full throttle, your game console for those boring moments when the boss is droning about service culture and multitasking. And while talking about multitasking, what other device teaches us this better than a mobile phone? How many times have you walked into a lamp post or missed a step on the staircase while doing an SMS?

For people with Blackberry, or iPhone, their handheld is a convergence of their laptop, internet and phone. The phone gives them quick access to their emails. It alerts them to new ones coming in instantaneously. Besides Blackberry and iPhone, most top end phones available now have the processing power and storage available in what used to be powerful desktop computers some years back.

The mobile phone, in essence, is a convergence of many utility devices that modern men and women have come to depend on to perform better at their work, relate better with themselves, keep abreast of developments around them and be better entertained.

So, when you toss a mobile phone in your breast pocket, just how many devices are you stuffing in there? They can be as many as 15 different devices or more, depending on the power of the mobile phone you have. We can run through the checklist: a communication device first and foremost, a diary, a calculator, a game media, a digital camera sometimes complete with flash, a video camera (some recording for as long as an hour), an organiser, a clock, an alarm device, a document viewer, a GPS device, a palm top for browsing the Internet, reading and sending emails, audio recorder, messaging device, a projector (yes, sir) and music player, among others.

Now add the following: a surveillance device and a TV set. Yes, these can be added even here in Nigeria. One of the four GSM operators, MTN Nigeria late last year activated its 3.5G network which enabled it to launch a service called MTN Video Camera service in August this year. With this service a subscriber can watch what is going on in a designated area any time he wishes by simply dialing the camera.

Mothers can mount a camera in a room where they have their children and dial into the camera anytime they wish to watch their children at home even while they are at work. Husbands can watch the goings on at home even while away in the office by simply dialing into their home-mounted cameras from their phones and they can see everything. You can even pan the camera to focus on any area of the room you wish by punching buttons on your phone.

Subscribers wishing to know how traffic is on routes where MTN has mounted traffic monitoring video cameras can dial into the operator’s traffic monitoring service to see how the routes are and plan their journeys to avoid traffic bottlenecks and get to the office earlier. So, no doubt about it, your phone can also now become Agent 007 device in your hands!

The same operator also this year launched Mobile TV services called DStv Mobile from MTN which enables subscribers to watch 11 satellite TV channels on their mobile phones on the move. The service was first launched in Lagos, but has since been taken to Abuja and lately Port Harcourt.

Mobile TV currently exists around the world via the 3G enabled TV streaming services and via composite technology services that can ride on the 2G/GSM platform. The one that offers the best broadcast quality rides on the “DB-H (Digital Video Broadcasting- Handheld) technology. MTN struck partnership with DMTV a sister company of MultiChoice to deliver this technology across its operations in Africa and the Middle East.

While it may sound as Utopian, the truth is that this service is actually live and Nigerians who were at its launch in Lagos earlier in the year, and in Port Harcourt recently were able to ascertain that the service is real. Not only that, the clarity and general picture quality of the programming on the mobile devices are the same as on a normal television.

The bouquet of programme channels immediately available on the service include NTA 2 for local news, CNN for international news, Super Sports Update, SupersSports 3 and 9, Channel O for music, Magic World and Africa Magic for entertainment, Cartoon Network for kids and TBN for Christian religious programmes. The service is also showing the ongoing Big Brother Africa on an eleventh channel. One of the special handsets goes for N45,000 while subscribers pay a monthly subscription fee of N1500.

In essence, if you can pay the price, your mobile phone can also be a TV set. But the innovations in the mobile phone industry are unending. As this is being written, manufacturers are thinking of or are already infusing the mobile phone with even more power, features and functionality.

A recent research by SITA, the IT provider to the air transport industry, shows that the world’s 3.2 billion mobile phones could be transformed into indispensable air travel tools within five years.

The report established that mobile phones have the potential to hold boarding passes, baggage tracking information and payment data, making travel truly paperless and location independent. There is also the future possibility that they can be used to store visa and biometric information.

So, there you have it. One day soon, your mobile phone will double as your international passport!

•Awe wrote in from Lagos.


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Nwogu commends eTranzact on ESA, Cardlex cash

Chairman, Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and other financial institutions, Senator Nkechi Nwogu, has commended the initiative of multi-application and channel electronic transaction operator, eTranzact on the launch of its Automated Teller Machine (ATM) Cardless Cash and eTranzact Strong Authentication (ESA) security solution, report CHARLES OKOH & UGOCHI NKWOCHA.

Speaking at the ceremony held in Lagos, last weekend, Senator Nwogu said that the new solutions would make way for easy transfer of funds and security of transactions by reducing the risk of doing business.

One exciting aspect of the new products, she said, is that it will make things more difficult for the criminal minded.

“eTranzact is complementing what the conventional banks are presently doing by developing an authenticated process of paying money without the fear of the card being stolen, without the Personal Identification Number (PIN) being copied and funds being taken without authorization,” she said.

She also said innovations such as these will go a long way in making Nigeria the financial hub of Africa, thus it’s possible for the nation to make the Vision 20-2020 dreams.

She called on banks and other financial institutions to collaborate with eTranzact to expand their activities and check the fraud being experienced using the ATM.

On the patent of the products as it affects Nigerian industries, the Director General, National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP), Mr. Obi Adiuku-Brown, lamented the state of investments in research funding in the country.

Research, he noted, gives the lead to improvement and that India is made thick today because of its development in software, stressing that India makes more money from sale of intellectual property than Nigeria is making from oil, urging the banks to fund research in software development.

Equally in his remark, an electronic entrepreneur turned Senator, Ayo Arise, spoke on prevention of e-fraud informing that there would soon be regulation against electronic fraud in the country.

Managing Director of eTranzact, Mr. Valentine Obi, explained that ESA utilizes security tokens to provide multi-factor authentication for payment transactions on any payment network.

Mr. Obi also said the deployment of ESA is unique because it leverages on users cell phone to manage security generation, thereby reducing cost of deployment for financial institutions whilst providing ease of use and convenience for the users.

The security token known as ESA code, he said, is generated by the subscriber cell phone as a One Time Pass Code (OTPC) that would be used as input for authorization and processing of transactions.

He assured that e-Tranzact solution provides zero liability against any loss due to card fraud to both cardholders and merchants using ESA.

Additionally, he said the eTranzact ATM Cardless cash, enables any mobile phone user to withdraw cash transferred to his or her mobile on any enabled ATM once or in bits, thereby reducing congestion in banks branches, while providing 24 hours access to money transfer services and is secured and convenient.


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Siemens Profile awards-09 opens

Organizers of the continental science and technology journalism awards, the Siemens Africa Profile Awards, has opened its doors for this year, 2009, edition.

Spokesman for Siemens Nigeria, Mr. Olusegun Akinlabi, said that the 2009 Siemens Africa Profile Awards competition has opened for entries, seeking to honour African media practitioners who excel in science and technology journalism.

According to him, the Siemens Profile Awards, now in their eighth year, are the only pan-African awards that exclusively promote science and technology journalism.

“African journalists are invited to submit entries between now and 31 January 2009 for any work published in print, online or broadcast media,” he said.

Akinlabi who is the Head, Corporate Communications at Siemens Nigeria, said the annual awards have become a leading item on the continent’s journalism calendar.

“We are impressed by the increased number of entries from all media platforms, and the general improvement in the quality of submissions. The African media are continually prioritizing science and technology coverage,” he said.

He emphasized that the 2007 Siemens Profile Awards attracted 264 entries from 17 African countries and expressed the hope that there will be more entries from Nigeria this year to increase the nation’s winning chances.

Akinlabi also said that the entries would be in four languages, namely English, French, Portuguese and Arabic.

He noted that the heightened media interest in science and technology issues during this year is expected to boost entries.

“Issues such as the surge in technology uptake and increased science research across the continent are already emerging as prominent themes in media coverage,” he said, stressing that the award categories have been changed.

The 2009 entries, he pointed out, may be submitted in six categories, namely, industry, energy, healthcare, information technology (with emphasis on business process and outsourcing), technology-related corporate social responsibility and the student category.

Akinlabi further said the new categories are expected to simplify the entry submission process, resulting in increased number of entries.

He said online submissions are welcome at www.profileawards.co.za or by post or courier to Siemens country offices around Africa.

Highlighting that the Siemens Profile Awards aim to advance quality science and technology reporting, he enjoined media practitioners on the continent, especially in the country to identify specific technology issues by addressing them, so as to bring about change in social-economic conditions.

“The awards encourage African science journalists to anchor their reporting in sound research, quality reporting and individual journalistic flair,” he said.


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NCC transfers internet facility to Galaxy

The Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, has officially granted a multimillion naira Internet project installed at the Federal Secretariat, Abuja, to Galaxy Backbone Plc, to manage and sustain the service which the Commission conceived and funded to provide Internet services to all civil servants located at the secretariat.

The chief executive officer, NCC, Dr. Ernest Ndukwe, who performed the handing over to the Managing Director, Galaxy Backbone, Mr. Gerald Ilukwe, expressed satisfaction with what the company has been doing, lately.

“This shows that this facility is in good hands for the benefit of the civil servants,” Ndukwe said.

Pointing out that the Commission had initiated the project in line with its mandate to facilitate and promote the use of ICT in Nigeria, and had obtained the approval of government to deploy Internet services to facilitate governance and the operations of the civil servants that work at the secretariat.

Dr. Ndukwe further said the Internet service for the secretariat was conceived two years ago before Galaxy Backbone was born and that the board of the commission approved the handover of the facility in line with the mandate of Galaxy Backbone to coordinate the provision of ICT facilities for government agencies.

He was optimistic that the company would add a lot of value in the provision and maintenance of the Internet services and other facilities that is has designed to provide within the ICT sector.

In his remark, Mr. Ilukwe commended NCC’s management for this project, and the liberal mindedness in handing over the facility to Galaxy Backbone.

This, he said, is one of the unsung achievements of NCC under Ndukwe watchful eyes, in providing the needed intervention to ensure that the use of ICT facilities is spread and applied for the benefit of governance and management of resources at all levels.

He stressed that it is important the public sector is empowered so that they do not become a lug in the progress of the private sector and that this initiative is a very profound one in empowering the public sector, and that this gesture of the NCC is part of that empowerment.

Galaxy Backbone, Ilukwe said, is thankful to NCC, not only for this gesture but also by its track of achievements in the industry which has opened new vista for the benefit of the nation and has made many things possible in Nigeria’s ICT environment.

“What we have got from NCC is unmatched in a relationship between two organizations of this nature in Nigeria. We have done a joint inspection of the site. Huge investments have already been made, the facilities are high end, and government will have lots of benefits to derive from this infrastructure”, Mr. Ilukwe said.

Expressing gratitude to the Commission for the gesture and requested that the Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF), be made to collaborate with Galaxy Backbone on numerous projects which fall under the purview of management.

Mr. Ilukwe also said that Galaxy Backbone is building its capacity to provide services to both public and private sectors and would continue to improve on what NCC has transferred to it.

He noted that more than N85 Billion has been invested by several organs and agencies of government and that Galaxy Backbone is in the position to coordinate this entire infrastructure to deliver value from the potentials of these deployments.


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Minister heads FG delegation to NITTA-08

Minister of Information and Communications, Chief John Ogar Odey, has confirmed his headship of the federal government’s delegation to this year’s edition of the Nigerian Information Technology and Telecom Awards (NITTA-08).

A press statement from the organisers said that Odey’s confirmation was an indication of endorsement by the federal government of the strategic and strengthening role that the NITTA is playing in nurturing the country’s Information and Communications Technology (ICT) industry.

The press statement signed by the chief host of the event and editor-in-chief of IT & Telecom Digest, organisers of the programme, Mr. Mkpe Abang, noted that Odey has promised to personally grace the occasion apart from heading government’s delegation to NITTA 2008.

In a telephone chat with the organisers, Mr. Odey was quoted as noting that government recognises the important role NITTA plays in ensuring a constantly dynamic ICT sector for Nigeria.

He also affirmed government’s desire to ensure that Nigerians continue to derive the highest benefits that a robust ICT industry could deliver, stressing that Nigerians deserve to enjoy quality services in the ICT sector, which will help them to improve their work, social and private lives.

Therefore, NITTA occupies a pride of place in the booming Nigerian ICT industry as the programme has contributed to create awareness for the sector while at the same time engendering healthy competition among operators, in their bid to serve their teeming and growing clientele.

“We will be there to support this programme. I received your special invitation and my office has since made adequate arrangement for us to be there and I promise that we would be there to cheer up the recipients of this year’s awards,” Odey assured.

Before now, the former Nigerian Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon (rtd) had accepted to preside over this year’s event, while the country’s first High Commissioner to United Kingdom and former Foreign Affairs Minister, Ambassador Matthew Mbu also expected to be the father of the day.

Other prominent citizens that confirmed gracing NITTA 2008 include the Executive Vice chairman and chief executive officer of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Ernest Ndukwe, Chairman of Zinox Technologies, Chief Leo-Stan Ekeh, among others.

Former ministers of communications expected at the event are immediate past minister of state for information and communications, Alhaji Dasuki Nakande; former minister of communications, Chief Cornelius Adebayo; Chief Wole Adeosun; Chief Olawale Ige to name a few.


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MTN Nigeria exceed 20m subscriber-base

The MTN Group is pleased to announce that it has increased its subscriber base to 80,736,000 with its Nigeria’s operation crossing the 20 million mark as at 30 September 2008 across the Group’s 21 operations in Africa and the Middle East .

MTN Group President and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Phuthuma Nhleko, who disclosed this, said that the third quarter result showed a 9 per cent increase from 74,058,000 subscribers recorded at 30 June 2008 by the group.

He also said that the proportional subscriber contribution between MTN’s regions remain unchanged with that at 30 June 2008.

He cited for instance that South and East Africa (SEA) region contributed 28 per cent of the Group’s total subscribers while West and Central Africa (WECA) and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) regions contributed 44 per cent and 28 per cent respectively.

The WECA region increased subscriber base by 10 per cent for the quarter under review with MTN Nigeria, contributing 56 per cent to the WECA region’s subscriber base, thus recording a 9 per cent increase in subscriber base to 20,171,000.

Aggressive network rollout in Nigeria, he said, continued in Q3 with 524 Base Transceiver Stations (BTSs) rolled out during the quarter.

“Quality of service improved significantly resulting in the advertising ban being lifted by the regulator,” he said.

In the WECA region, he further said that MTN Zone was introduced in Ghana, Cameroon and Benin during the period under review with Ghana rolling out 377 BTSs and increased its subscriber base by 14 per cent to 5,713,000.

Both Cameroon and Cote d’Ivoire increased their subscriber bases by 7 per cent to 3,313,000 and 3,243,000 respectively.

In addition, the SEA region increased subscriber base by 7 per cent for the quarter with South African operation contributing 72 per cent subscribers, while its subscribers increased by 4 per cent to 16,173,000 for the quarter ended 30 September 2008.

According to him, the Postpaid net connections were satisfactory for the quarter, with growth underpinned by the value proposition of MTN Zone, which was enhanced to include off net calls and which continues to be a success.

Uganda increased its subscriber base by 16 per cent followed the introduction of MTN Zone in late July, with approximately 2 million subscribers on this price plan at 30 September 2008.

In the MENA region a record of 10 per cent increase in subscribers for the quarter was made.

MTN attributed this mainly due to continued growth from the Iran operation, which increased its subscribers by 13 per cent to 13,139,000.

Following the substantial disconnections in second quarter (Q2), he noted that subscriber growth in Sudan started to show an improvement with a 7 per cent increase in its subscribers to 2,266,000.

“Syria ‘s more modest increase of 2 per cent is attributed to a slowdown in acquisitions during the Ramadan period,” he said, stressing MTN is satisfied with the subscriber growth across its operations and will continue to explore value enhancing opportunities.


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Nokia presents star prize to Ijeoma

The Nokia 13-week promotion, Bond and Be More ended with the presentation of the grand prize, a brand new Toyota Highlander to the star prize winner, Miss Ijeoma Ezeogu.

Other lucky winners also took home prizes ranging from 2.5 kva generating sets, Plasma TVs, laptops, 1-year subscription on DSTV and HiTv and a return ticket to Dubai.

Speaking after receiving her prize, Miss Ezeogu, who is a management trainee with GTBank Plc, said, “I did not believe it. I just bought a new Nokia phone due to the loss of the one I had and it got me a car. I really want to say a big thank you to Nokia for this great prize. It is really unbelievable.”

Also, the winner of the return ticket to Dubai, Mr. Ndudi Eze, narrated his experience when he learnt he had won this prize.

“My wife and I thought it was one of those fake calls, but today, I believe it is true. I thank Nokia for the big prizes they are giving us. They are doing a good job.”

In her remarks, the Communications Manager Nokia Nigeria and West Africa, Mrs. Ngozi Ife Anene, while congratulating the winners, encouraged them to continue to keep Nokia as a friend and not just a mobile phone.

“We are happy that our consumers are happy and feel rewarded. At Nokia we aim to connect people in ways they least expect. Our human approach to technology and our mobile devices are created as a result of our view of the world today. We see it from a creative and friendly perspective and that has made it easy for us at Nokia to fuse technology, creativity and fun, thus providing a solution for everyone,” she said.

During the promo, consumers who bought any Nokia mobile phones in the series of 2630, 3110, 3500, 5310, 6500, N70, N82, N72, N95 and E51 qualified for the promo.

With each purchase, Mrs. Anene said, buyers were given Bond and Be More raffle ticket, which were filled in and deposited the stub in a collection point within the retail outlet with prize draws were held every fortnight.

A total of 200 generating sets, 16 laptops, 16 DSTV and 16 HiTv 1 year subscription for each one, 8 Plasma screens, 3 brand new Kia Sportage jeeps, 4 return tickets to Dubai and 1 Toyota Highlander were given out in all during the entire promotion.

Nokia mobile devices are produced to meet basic needs of the majority in every area of functionality; ease of use, creativity, entertainment, connectivity, and most importantly Phone sharing, while it maintains its position as a leader in the mobility sector.


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2 emerge @ Visafone’s 12-car promo

Two lucky subscribers of Visafone Limited, operators of the Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), emerged as owners of the branded 2008 Kia Rio cars in it’s first and second batch of raffle draws in the on-going fantastic bonanza offering 12 cars in 12 weeks, reports CHARLES OKOH.

The subscribers who emerged at raffle draws held in Lagos included Mr. Kolawole Sampson of 7up Bottling Company Ibadan and Mr. Francis Ike, a resident of Gwagwalada, Abuja, for week one and two respectively.

Managing Director, Visafone Nigeria, Mr. Thomas Ninan said at the event that the operator has the unbeaten record of achieving the one million subscriber base in just six months of commencing operations, noting that the company also made the 1.5 million mark in just 8 months.

He said, the strategy of Visafone has been quality of service, coverage and capacity building, insisting that the telco also offers the cheapest telephone and call rate at N6 per minute for local calls and N12 for international calls on fixed lines.

Explaining the modules for the promo, the Head, Marketing and Strategy at Visafone, Mr. Clifford Onyeike, said the telco has spread to over 18 states and 160 cities and towns.

To qualify for the bonanza, he said, subscribers are expected to recharge for N400 weekly and that the offer will last from October to January 4, 2009.

Mr. Onyeike said that any Visafone activation during the promo comes with a N1,000 free airtime and 100 free short messaging service (SMS) as he enjoined Nigerians to take charge of the promo by participating actively so as not to miss the attached rewards.

Meanwhile, Head, Corporate Communications at Visafone, Mr. Toni-Kan Onwudi told Champion Infotel that the promo, is the company strategies to give out 12 brand new and latest model Kia saloon cars in 12 weeks to 12 lucky subscribers on the Visafone network.

Also, he said that Visafone would give out millions of naira worth of free airtime and free Short Messaging Services (SMS) to subscribers who would join the network during the promo period.

He brought to mind that Visafone has consummate banker and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) philanthropist, Mr. Jim Ovia as founder.
and commenced commercial operations on February 22, 2008.


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Omatek launches e-Xpress in Ghana

Omatek Computers Ghana Limited in partnership with the government of Ghana has formally launched its e-Xpress consumer initiative to make computer acquisition easy and affordable.

The e-Xpress scheme was launched in conjunction with the Ministry of Communications under the umbrella of the Ghana Government Assisted Personal Computer (PC) Programme - i-Advance.

Group Managing Director, Omatek Ventures Plc, Mrs. Florence Seriki, said that her firm’s e-Xpress Consumer Scheme comes with a huge funding support from partnering banks which makes it easy for civil servants, corporate executives, organizations, educational institutions, Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) as well as students to acquire computers through a convenient payment plan which spreads between 12 and 24 months.

Seriki also said the collaboration between Omatek e-Xpress scheme and the i-Advance would help to bridge the digital divide, while enhancing Information Technology (IT) penetration in Ghana.

Omatek, she said, remains the only company in East, West and Central Africa that produces computers and casings from Completely Knocked Down (CKD) components sourced from the highest grades of manufacturers, thus making all Omatek computers of world-class standards comparable to any other foreign brand.

She also said that the international quality consciousness for Omatek brand of products was reflected in "The Best Systems Builder Award" presented by Microsoft in 2005.

The award, she noted, covers the West, East and Central Africa, and in effect, confirms Omatek’s pioneering status in building quality computer brands.

Commenting, the Minister of Communications, Dr. Benjamin Aggrey–Ntim said the new partnership between Omatek e-Xpress and i-Advance would enhance e-governance, especially in the public sector.

This, he said would also make the country become a truly technology driven society, urging civil servants to optimize the use of the computers to justify government’s expenditure on Information and Communications Technology (ICT) infrastructural development.

The event also marked the official unveiling of the new Omatek brand identity, power products and 8"& 10"TFT screen positioned for the education sector.

On hand to launch the e-Xpress was the Ghanaian Minister of Communication, Dr. Benjamin Aggrey – Ntim. The Ghanaian Minister of Education, Prof. Dominic Forbi, unveiled the Omatek 8 inches smartbook while the Nigerian High Commissioner to Ghana, Sen. Musilium Obanikoro unveiled the new Omatek Corporate identity.

The impressive ceremony which was held at the State House Banquest Hall, was attended by the Ghanaian Minister of Defence, Kan Daapa, members of the Diplomatic Corps, representative of the Nigerian High Commission in Ghana, top Bank Executives in Ghana and Omatek Directors among others.


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