Bomb blast: Ekuwem tasks FG on ICT deployment

Remmy Nweke:

The Executive Vice Chairman of Teledom Group International, Dr. Emmanuel Ekuwem has said that Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) would make a great difference in the fight against bomb-blast and other insecurity in the country.

Speaking recently in Lagos, Ekuwem who is the immediate past president of Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), said Nigerians must shun individualism in the effort to achieve national security.

He urged the federal government to appreciate the ability of ICT in aiding security and forestalling criminal activities.

“We must not jeopardize the security of our country for pecuniary reasons,” he warned.

Decrying the delays in the commencement of the Subscribers Identification Module (SIM) card registration in the country, Ekuwem said the situation is embarrassing and painful.

“It shows that we do not fully understand the danger non- registration of SIM cards poses to our national and individual security,” he said, stressing that security affects all including individuals, governments, institutions, organizations and companies alike.

He noted that though the approval of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) budget for the exercise took a melodramatic turn in the National Assembly, Nigerians must be able to uniquely match every SIM card in the mobile telecom networks to an individual be it a person or company.

“We are now able to crisscross the cyberspace from cellular space to the web and from the web to the cellular space,” he said, noting that the security implication of not being proactive at this time is worrisome.

Ekuwem who was the former president of the Nigeria Internet Group (NIG), pointed out that whenever and wherever security is of essence there must necessarily be a reduction in speed.

“Have we ever walked casually into an aircraft to fly without being security-checked: our checked-in luggage, our carry-on luggage and our personal checks with metal detectors along with all the unsolicited massage by men and women on duty? Do we drive at high speed over speed bumps or zebra crossings? Do we not slow down or stop at check-points manned by the police or soldiers or customs, Federal Road Safety Corp (FRSC) and so on?

In all these, he said, speeds are reduced for the good of all, wondering why activities in the telecom industry should be an exception?

“If having to wait for a few minutes to have your essential personal data captured before you are given a new SIM card will slow down business somewhat, so be it. Thank God all that is history now,” he said.

Ekuwem whose firm, Technology Development Company (TDC) Limited, deals on usage of ICT for security purposes, has advised the federal government led by President Goodluck Jonathan to ensure that they deploy advanced detectors to curb the rising wave of insecurity especially bomb attacks.

He noted that the incessant bomb-blast has become a thing of concern to well-meaning Nigerians and especially those who know there is much technology can do to alleviate the situation.

He, however, blamed the government for not being proactive over security matters in the country. “The government’s inability to sufficiently appreciate the urgent need to deploy advanced technologies that could enhance effective security surveillance, monitoring and policing across the nation, is a clog on the wheel of progress of this country,” he said.

Further decrying the recent bomb blast that rocked Abuja on the eve of 2010 Christmas and New Year 2011, Ekuwem said it’s shameful, given that the October 1 bombing in Abuja was enough warning for the government to know that this is not a mere threat, but something that needs urgent actions.

Ekuwem said the fact that the security agencies could not detect the movement of the bomb
devices into Jos and Abuja are indications that much still needed to be done to improve security surveillance, monitoring and policing operations in the country.

“The government should appreciate the enormous power of ICT and leverage on it for national security operations,” he said, emphasising that there are modern technologies like Vehicle and Cargo Inspection System (VACIS), with the ability to scan every piece of cargo, container, truck and vehicles that enters Nigeria through the seaports, airports and inland border posts.

“They can capture the number plates, biometrics of the driver as well as photographs and video clips of each port/border crossing into Nigeria by any cargo, container, truck, tanker or vehicle.
They can scan on specific highways, roads, check-points, inland waterways as well as the contents of cars, trucks, tankers, boats and ferries as the case may be,” Ekuwem said.

He explained that the scanned bulk material data, the image and video could be monitored in-situ, remotely with the same outputs, which could be stored locally and remotely while stored data, could be accessed remotely on a password-restricted basis.

He maintained that if such security surveillance and monitoring facilities were installed in Abuja and other major cities prior to the latest incident, the security operatives would have been able to detect, intercept the bomb and apprehend the criminals.

According to him, there are fixed and mobile scanning devices that could be installed at strategic locations to monitor vehicles and persons with a view to checking the movement of arms and ammunitions including all sorts of dangerous weapons.

Dr. Ekuwem pointed out that mobile VACIS scanning systems would patrol streets and parking lots and detect bombs, explosives, arms, ammunitions and weapons hidden or welded inside the body or chasis of parked vehicles.

He advised security agencies in the country to take advantage of advanced security-based technologies ranging from intrusion sensing, detection, national identity data capture and management, biometrics data capture and storage, password-restricted access to stored data for both local and remote access, village-wide, town-wide, city-wide, state-wide and nation-wide surveillance (video with bi-directional audio) with local/in-situ, distributed and central/national storage/archiving with password-restricted access as well as with date-and-time-specific playback devices for criminal investigations.

Nigeria’s ICT industry, he said, has the capability to help the nation check the growing insecurity by establishing criminal databases with exciting agency-specific graphical user interfaces for use by law enforcement agencies.

Further, Ekuwem said the government has no reason to appear helpless at this time of serious national security crisis when there is robust ICT sector that could be relied upon for effective preventive remedies.

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2010: SIM card registration intrigues top issues (1)

The Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector may have start the year 2010, but top on the list of stakeholders was the SIM card registration writes REMMY NWEKE.
THE year 2010 must have ended with some intrigues topped by the blues emanating from the processes of making Nigerians to see reason for the registration of their Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) cards.

Although some considerable progress may have been made, there were some challenges, especially in getting the political class, especially at the National Assembly to initially approve the Federal Government’s nominee for the post of the Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) of the telecommunications regulator, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).

Despite this, the year 2010 could be said to have began on a good note with the report coming in from Anambra State that its partnering with the public sector-based Information and Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure provider, Galaxy Backbone Plc, for the provision of internet connectivity with video conferencing capabilities to 110 secondary schools in the state.

This was soon followed with the launch at Awka, the Anambra State capital with the Executive Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi endorsing the contract papers alongside the Managing Director, Galaxy Backbone Plc, Mr. Gerald Ilukwe.

Mr. Obi had noted that the initiative was aligned with his drive to develop human capital and turn the state into a 21st century knowledge society through the provision of network connectivity that is accessible to students and teachers at a fast speed in the Anambra State secondary education system.

His administration, Obi said, has demonstrated the commitment to lift the standard of education in the state with this project.

“You may be familiar with our chequerred recent past in this state, but we are making sure that we will bring the state back to its lost glory, restore hope and move education forward to achieve the desired change in this state,” he said.

He further said that his government has commenced the building of 4,000 classrooms across the state, which he described as the largest anywhere in the country, stressing that not long ago, his administration provided 108 schools with generating sets, and now the internet connectivity to 110 secondary schools in the first phase and actualized the plans to move on to Microsoft Academy for the state.

In his comments, Managing Director, Galaxy Backbone Plc, Mr. Ilukwe exhibited confidence that the deal is a demonstration of the governor’s promise and commitment to raise the standard of education in the state, thus affirming that Anambra people would get the best out of the partnership.

Equally in his remark, the Corporate Executive in-charge of States, Education & Development department of the Galaxy, Mr. Yusuf Kazaure commended Gov. Obi for his efforts at upgrading the standard of education in his domain, stressing that it is a revolution in the annals of the nation’s education sector.

The ICT initiative, he said, would foster collaborative relationships between teachers and students in the development, mostly in sharing of content applications and other resources as well as stimulating capacity building among educational institutions in the state.

“We are committed to the Gov. Obi’s vision for the state and when we are able to succeed at this level, the state will be better for it because the governor’s mission is to turn the state into a 21st century knowledge society,” Kazaure asserted.

He explained that the network connectivity initiative would enhance the development of human capital in the state, maintaining that human capital development is the hope of the world, and that the initiative of the governor would ensure growth in the state in the future.

… As UNILAG graduates 6,134, 87 in computer engineering
Messrs Aladesawe, Adeyemi Omololu and Ndukaife, Justus Chukwunonso were on top of their game last year with their emergence as the best graduating students in Computer Engineering from the Electrical and Electronics Engineering Faculty of the University of Lagos (UNILAG).

The duo clinched first class honours out of the 87 students that graduated and passed out in First Class division out of the 6,134 that graduated between 2007 and year 2009, whereas in the 2007 and 2008 class in the faculty, there was no first class, while four recorded second class upper credit, two in the second class lower, whereas six were successful in the third class.

Master Ndukaife told correspondent at the graduation ground that he remain grateful to God almighty for making it possible, just as he gave kudos to the school authorities in UNILAG in addition to his parents for standing behind him all through the time.

The duo of Aladesawe and Ndukaife led 40 others in their session to emerge, including nine in second class upper, 17 in second class lower, 13 in third class and one emerging pass in the 2009 set.

ITRealms Online recalls that these awards were in tandem with the University of Lagos Act of 1967, which empowered the university to grant degrees, diplomas, certificates and other distinctions as well as to award medals, prizes and other titles. It also provided that the chancellor shall preside at all meetings of the congregation held for conferring degrees.

As said by the Vice Chancellor of UNILAG then, Prof. Tolu Odugbemi in his address titled “A Dream Come True – Not A Nightmare” noting there were 3,525 graduating students for the 2009 convocation. Even as he explained that in the faculty of Arts for instance, there were 316, Education 470, Environmental Sciences 226, Science 329, Social Science 444 and Distance Learning Institute (DLI) recording 1,740.

The occasion was the conferment of honourary doctorate degrees on eminent Africans, scholars, researchers and seasoned diplomats within and outside the country by the university authorities. Some of the beneficiaries included Dr. Kofi Annan with Doctor of Laws, Prof. C.O. Taiwo, and Prof. Umaru Shehu got Doctor of Science respectively while Chief Emeka Anayoku was decorated with Doctor of Literature.

The year under review also witnessed the chairmanship of the President, Internet Service Providers Association of Nigeria (ISPAN), Chief Samuel Adeleke at the 2010 edition of annual Nigeria DigitalSENSE forum, which focuses on the evolutions on the Internet Governance Forum (IGF).

The organizers through the Executive Director, Operations, DigitalSENSE Africa, Mrs. Nkemdilim Nweke, said the best person to take over the chairmanship of the event from Chief Chima Onyekwere, was Adeleke and called to mind that the chairman of Linkserve Group, the pioneer ISP firm in the country, Chief Onyekwere presided over the forum in 2009, while Adeleke is the chairman and chief executive officer, Steineng Limited since January 1999.

She expressed belief that the exploit will be repeated when the 2010 edition of the forum held on Friday, April 16 opened on the ‘Five years of IGF: The way forward for Nigeria’ as part of efforts at preparing Nigeria for the global Internet Governance Forum which held in Vilnius, Lithuania between September 14 and 17, 2010.

In his acceptance speech to preside over the annual Nigeria DigitalSENSE forum, Chief Adeleke regretted not being available during the last year’s forum physically which he said, was followed religiously through the internet.

He also said that there is no doubt the feat of last edition of the forum would be repeated this year given the quality of speakers and attendance as well as the arrangements on ground to make it a success.

Adeleke further commended the organizers of the forum, DSA, for their foresight in finding value in putting such a forum together for the education and enlightenment of Nigerians, especially the internet community in the country, more so on the growing relevance of Internet Governance Forum.

He stressed the need to consistently keep Nigeria and its internet community on their toes at this era where information and Communication Technologies (ICT) have continuously been identified as veritable tool for development.

“We need to mobilize and participate in this forum for our own good and good of our customers using a global best bench mark,” he said.

e-Tax solution:
As the year 2010 gains moment, the Signals Mega Concept (SMC) Limited, an information and communication (ICT) marketing company, introduced Point-of-Sales electronic tax (POS e-TAX) into the Nigerian market. This the Managing Director of SMC, Mr. Benjamin Onigbinde, said POS e-Tax is an electronic tax payment solution that runs on Point of Sales Terminals with designated tax card.

He noted that the proportion of the population that pay tax is very small, insisting that most of them fall under the Pay As You Earn (PAYEE) system; where tax is deducted directly from income, just as the logistics of this tax collection has not made it easy for would-be tax payers to meet this constitutional obligation.

He highlighted some of the challenges to include handling at payment points, security, accountability, and long queues, stressing that for the government’s revenue drive to achieve a maximum to have impact, a system that will make the tax payment easy and convenient needs to be introduced.

Also, Onigbinde said the scope of the solution covers deployment of statewide online Point of Sales (POS) Terminals, production of a special designed tax card, explaining that the solution runs an online sophisticated network system linking tax offices, and other revenue collection agencies to the participating banks.

“POS e-TAX will not only solve the problem of tax collection but will create a database of information that will be valuable to the government,” he said, outlining the benefits to include improving revenue collection, remove cash leakage because there will be no cash payment, improve service delivery and standard, better reach to tax payers and easy to dispense, administrative convenience (easier reconciliation) and more information to assist decision making.

NATCOMS wants a place @ NCC board
The year 2010 saw one of the consumer rights groups in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector, the National Association of Telecommunications Subscribers (NATCOMS) wanting a consumer representative in the board of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).

The national president of NATCOMS, Chief Deolu Ogunbanjo, made this call while evaluating ‘A Decade of NCC’s Telecommunications Consumerism,’ just as he solicited voice call tariff reduction to N20.00.

This, he said, has become vital because it was provided for in the Nigeria Communications Act, arguing that if the operators pay their dues to NCC as stipulated by the Act based on subscribers’ patronage of these operators, it is imperative to have a consumer representation in the board of NCC.

He also cited an instance, with the Nigerian Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), where the President of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) is represented in the board, saying there are several other government agencies, councils, commissions, parastatals that have relevant industry non-governmental organizations on the board.

Another instance, according to him, is the inclusion in the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) a representative of the National Parent Teacher Association of Nigeria (NAPTAN) in the board and wanted to know who is representing “the Consumer in the board of NCC as provided for in the Nigerian Communications Commission Act?”

*Continues next week.

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Iwuanyanwu calls for more investments in ICT sector

National President, Consumer Rights Advocacy Networks (CRANET), Dr. Martins Iwuanyanwu, has called on investors in the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) to take advantage of the growing market by investing in the sector, reports CHARLES OKOH.

He said there are still a lot of underserved areas waiting to be tapped.

Iwuanyanwu who is also the founder, Emerging Leaders Network (El-net) Club, while speaking in Lagos recently, said the nation would be a force to be reckoned with in the nearest future in ICT.

He said the Nigerian market is quite huge, not just in the ICT but also in other sectors, adding that the population of the nation can attract investment from any part of the world.

“People were suggesting that with three major GSM operators there might not be need for new entrants, but Etisalat came in and subscribers now have enough choice to choose from; which is the main reason that the NCC is talking about number portability. It is an evolving market and several elements are at play. In a matter of time you will discover that we still have a very huge underserved market. So, I encourage investors to come in because there are a lot of opportunities open to them,” he said.

He also called on the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to continue to pursue reduction in tariff, maintaining that Nigerians should begin to enjoy the benefits of increased bandwidth in 2011.

“The emergence of MainOne and Glo 1 would not amount to anything if there is no reduction in the cost particularly in Internet access and also improved quality of service. The average Nigerian wants to have internet facility in his home. We expect that in 2011, the cost of internet access should not be more than N1,000 per month,” he said

He also challenged the Dr. Eugene Juwah-led NCC to strengthen the working relationship between advocacy groups and the NCC, adding that some of its members are already complaining.

“I think the way out is to find a way of building the house collectively and not pulling it down,” he said.

Iwuanyanwu called on operators to be fair to their subscribers by not only reducing tariff but also ensuring quality of service at all times.

“It is only for the operators to understand that they do not have to eat their tomorrow today. Some of them appear to want to recoup their investment in a hurry, it should not be so. Nigeria is not going to collapse so I do not see the need for the hurry,” he said.
 
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NigComSAT 1R: China reassures on completion date

Remmy Nweke:

Rising from the sixth Quarterly Management Review (QMR) meeting in Abuja at the weekend, officials of Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited (NIGCOMSAT) and China Great Wall Industry Corporation (CGWIC) have said the Nigeria Satellite 1 replacement (NigComSat-1R) will be delivered on schedule.

Disclosing this to ITRealms Online Managing Director of NigComSAT, Mr. Timasaniyu Ahmed-Rufai, said that with the major performance requirement tests already accomplished, activities leading to the launch of NigComSat 1R, are now in high gear.

ITRealms Online recalls that NigComSAT and top officials of Federal Ministry of Finance and China Academy of Space Technology (CAST), Beijing, met recently in China.

He disclosed that the project has entered an advance stage of Assembly and Integration Test (AIT) of the platform and payload components, an indication that the project is very much on course for the delivery at the last quarter of 2011.

The spacecraft, he said, would be operated on geo-stationary orbit of 42.5 degrees; and will provide 14 Ku-band active channels, 4 C-band active channels, 8 Ka-band and 2 navigational channels.

Ahmed-Rufai assured that with the launch of NigComSat-1R, Nigerians will be able to enjoy affordable broadband and multimedia services.

He also pointed out that despite the arrival of fibre on the shores of Nigeria; satellite is still needed to transmit from landing point in Lagos to other parts of the country.

Additionally, he said, NIGCOMSAT is already preparing a Direct-To-Home (DTH) platform which will be ready before the launch of NigComSat-1R, thus paving way for local DTH companies to leverage on.

He also said that rising from the sixth Quarterly Management Review (QMR) meeting in Abuja recently, officials of both firms pledged to deliver the project on schedule.

The NIGCOMSAT’s Project Manager, Mr. Abdulraheem Adajah, led the Nigerian team to the meeting while the China Great Wall team was led by Chief Engineer, Mr. Hu Gang.

Worthy of note is that Venezuela recently celebrated the second anniversary of VENESAT-1, a Dong Fang Hong (DFH-4) platform, for digital telecommunications and broadcasting. The performance of the satellite is said to have been very good. It was built and launched by China Great Wall.

Apart from aforementioned, Venezuela, no fewer than four communications satellites are due for launch in the next few months ahead of NigComSat-1R.

China Great Wall recently signed a contract with Bolivia to deliver a communications satellite on the DFH-4 platform too. This is an indication that Nigeria has nothing to worry about.

He quoted the China Great Wall officials as explaining in Abuja during the QMR that extra precautionary measures and quality control measures are being taken to ensure that nothing is left to chance in order to deliver a robust and high performance satellite.

One of the features of NigComSat-1R is the newly introduced Asian beam meant for content trunking and service delivery to Asia, Europe and Africa.

The spacecraft will be operated on geo-stationary orbit of 42.5*E; and will provide 14 Ku-band active channels, 4 C-band active channels, 8 Ka-band and 2 navigational channels.

Ahmed-Rufai assured that with the launch of NigComSat-1R, Nigerians will be able to enjoy affordable broadband and multimedia services.

He also pointed out that despite the arrival of fibre on the shores of Nigeria; satellite is still needed to transmit from landing point in Lagos to other parts of the country.

Indeed, he said NIGCOMSAT is already preparing a Direct-To-Home (DTH) platform which will be ready before the launch of NigComSat-1R, thus paving way for local DTH companies to emerge.

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NIRA hands over thisday.ng to Leaders & Company

Remmy Nweke:

The management of Leaders & Company Limited, the publishers of ThisDay Newspapers Group has taken the possession of thisday.ng.

Confirming this on Monday, President of the Nigeria Internet Registration Association (NIRA), Mrs. Mary Uduma said it’s a good development for the Nigerian internet community and development of the industry in the country.

She also said that the move by ThisDay to take up its corporate identity as its own Second Level Domain (SLD) name in the .ng Registry is a milestone in the Nigerian internet space.

Commending the ThisDay management for the step, she enjoined other corporate Nigerian to tow the path of being identified by the truly Nigerian brand on the World Wide Web with pride.

According to her, the usage of .ng by credible Nigerians and corporate citizens will facilitate the needful change in the current battered image of the country on the internet.

She pointed out that Leaders & Company has met the NIRA Executive Board’s requirement for the acquisition of Second Level Domain - thisday.ng, describing the pace-setting move as worthy of emulation.

Chairman and chief executive officer, Leaders & Company Limited, Mr. Nduka Obaigbena, in the letter of expression for the registration of thisday.ng domain, had said that his firm was excited to have its Nigerian brand of internet address.

This acquisition, he said, would entail the migration of it’s hitherto website, www.thisdayonline.com to www.thisday.ng, which has since gone live on Monday, January 3, 2011.

“We believe it will promote international and national interest in the Nigerian national domain registration making it fashionable and highly desirable for Nigerian entities and corporates operating in Nigeria to change to the .ng domain” he said.

Additionally, he said, ThisDay is committed to partnering with NIRA to promote the .ng country code Top Level Domain (ccTLD) name through collaboration.

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NIRA releases guideline for 50,000 free .ng domains

Remmy Nweke:

The Nigeria Internet Registration Association (NIRA) has released guidelines for its 50,000 free .ng domains promotion, just as plans have been made for the formal launch of the project before the end of this January.

The promo which is in line with the Nigeria’s 50 years independence anniversary is to propel the adoption of the nation’s country code Top Level Domains (ccTLD) by interested Nigerians for free.

This was disclosed by NIRA president, Mrs. Mary Uduma at the weekend, saying that the promo is expected to last for 50 days.

The promo which commenced last weekend, Friday, December 31, 2010 and would last till March 21, 2011.

She noted that as managers of the Nigerian name space on the internet, the Association feels a great call to duty to identify with the Golden Jubilee celebrations of the nationhood.

“This sense of identification is tied to our perceptiveness of the collective responsibility required to project the true and appropriate Nigerian image; and our conviction that the nation’s country code Top Level Domain, .ng, is a veritable tool towards achieving this,” she said.

Uduma also said that NIRA is partnering with the Ministry of Information and Communications in the Re-branding Nigeria Project with the offer of 50,000 free .ng domains in 50 days, which is subject to availability.

The project to be championed by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), she said, would provide the necessary funding for the project implementation.

In addition, she said, NITDA has committed to training a substantial number of Nigerian youths as web developers in readiness for an envisaged increased demand for the services of web developers with the registration of 50,000 .ng domains in the first quarter of 2011.

This, she said, is more evident with the target population of the .ng registry with 250,000 domains by the end of 2011, thereby preparing them for gainful employment, even as it will sponsor the capacity building effort of NIRA in the setting up of a datacenter and co-location facility to support the activation of the 250,000 domains.

“NITDA is committed to promoting the adoption of government policy to recognize only .ng e-mails for Government-to-Government, Government-to-Business, and Government-to-Citizens transactions,” she stated in the project guideline published at NIRA website, stressing that the registration of free domains had commenced on Friday, December 31, 2010 and is expected to last till March 21, 2011.

The offer, she said, entails that registrars would register domains at no cost to registrants for a period of one year, while the free domains are limited to some of the second level domains, namely .com.ng; .org.ng; .name.ng; .mobi.ng, and .sch.ng with a proviso a process of verification must be adhered to.

ITRealms Online recalls that NIRA was founded on March 23, 2005 as a stakeholder-led organisation, charged with the management of the nation’s Country Top Level Domain Name (ccTLD), dot ng.

NIRA’s establishment was the end of a long period of inactivity and dispute on the appropriate management of this important National Resource. Coordinated by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Stakeholders within Nigeria’s Internet community participated in its formation.

NIRA’s formation brought to an end the long years of .ng controversy in the country, following the intervention of the former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo.

The realisation of the .ng ccTLD came after nearly 12 years in which the country code was hosted in the United States (USA) by an American named Randy Bush. While Bush was the host of the domain name, Mrs. Ibukun Odusote served as the administrative point of contact.

Although the .ng was being managed by NITDA on behalf of the Federal Government, even as NIRA’s constitution was adopted by stakeholders, at a meeting held on March 28, 2006 at the Musical Society of Nigeria (MUSON) Centre, Onikan-Lagos.

NIRA’s Board of Trustees (BoT) was elected among the stakeholders with Dr. Isaac A. Odeyemi as chairman shortly after the adoption of the constitution. By May 1, 2007, the first executive board of NIRA was elected with late Ndukwe Kalu leading a 10-man board.

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Airtel promises enhanced customer service

As part of the New Year package, Airtel African operation has promised customers in the region of enhanced services this year, reports REMMY NWEKE.

The chief executive officer for International and Joint Managing Director, Mr. Manoj Kohli, made this assertion in Nairobi, Kenya, at the weekend, saying that as the world’s fifth largest telecom company, Airtel has its sights set on improving the African telecom infrastructure in 2011.

He said that Airtel remains committed to offering affordable services, deepening its network coverage to include the rural population and enhancing the digital experience through Third Generation (3G) across the continent with the anticipated offering of a better brand experience for all its customers on the continent.

“I would like to take this opportunity to wish all our customers and stakeholders an illustrious start to the New Year,” he declared, and appreciated the governments for their overwhelming support wherever Airtel has operations.

“We want to be a partner in Africa’s growth and will work closely with the Governments and Regulators to enable the telecom networks touch all parts of society,” he said.

ITRealms Online recalls that in a move to accelerate the transformation of African mobile communications and positively impact the speed of economic development across the African continent, Bharti Airtel Limited and IBM recently announced the selection of IBM to manage the computing technology and services that would bring enhancement Bharti Airtel’s mobile network.

In addition, the deal would see to the deployment and managing Information Technology (IT) infrastructure and applications, just as IBM would use advanced technologies created by its research team, including the Spoken Web - a voice-enabled Internet that allows users to access and share information simply by talking over the existing telephone network, which is particularly compelling for populations with little or no literacy, visual impairments, or lack access to computers.

In addition, IBM plans to deploy a powerful content management system to offer rich media content such as music and video over mobile devices, while simultaneously facilitating the growth of the application developer community in Africa.

Strategic partnerships with Ericsson, Huawei and NSN will exponentially improve the quality of the network across the African landscape and expand the footprint of the 2G and 3G services. In line with global trends, Africa is experiencing a surge in demand for access to mobile data applications. The modernization and optimization of the networks will give Airtel an opportunity to offer exciting services in 2011.

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Beacon of ICT awards gets March date

The organisers of Beacon of ICT awards, has disclosed that the event would in March this year, reports REMMY NWEKE.

A press statement made available to ITRealms Online, the organisers, Communication Week Media Limited, said that the merit-centric celebrations of deserving talents, contributions and commitments to the growth of the ICT industry in Nigeria would hold Saturday, March 26, at Eko Hotels and Suites in Victoria Lagos,

According to the Editor-in-chief of Communication Week, Mr. Ken Nwogbo, this year promises to be a celebration of Nigeria’s finest and brightest companies and individuals.

He noted that the medium which publishes Nigeria CommunicationsWeek, is an influential weekly covering the know-how of ICT and other business.

Also he said that preparations have reached advanced stages to host the cream of the society at the special evening of tributes to achievers.

Nwogbo said that top industry regulators and players have confirmed attendance of the award ceremony.

He explained that Beacon of ICT awards now in its second year are free and have been designed primarily to recognize government and business organizations as well as individuals for their creativity and excellence in the application of ICTs and solutions to provide efficient and high-quality services to Nigerians.

“As always been the system with Beacon of ICT Awards, awardees will be chosen by Nigerians who recognize and appreciate the guiding lights of the organizations and individuals as well as the symbols of hope they raise,” he said.

He maintained that the awards aim among others to evaluate and recognize standards of excellence in the country’s quest for growth and development in the use of ICT and encourage public and private and institutions to use ICT for development in general and improved public cum citizens’ services in particular.

Even as he said, the awards motivate other stakeholders in effective utilization of ICT for citizen’s services and ensure that ICT professionals are provided a benchmark for recognizing and validating outstanding contribution

“All these are because ICTs have become indispensable tools in improving the efficiency and quality of public service and also emerging as the key to growth and competitiveness in an increasingly globalized economy,” he said.

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UNESCO supports study on potentials Web 2.0

The Colombian organization, Consejo de Redacción, in collaboration with UNESCO’s Office in Quito and within the framework of the IPDC project, Strengthening Investigative Journalism through ICT, is conducting research on how social networks could be used for the dissemination of information, reports REMMY NWEKE.

A press statement made available to ITRealms Online showed that the study, entitled Communication Lab on Social Networks, began in September 2010.

UNESCO also notes that by illustrating the most effective communication strategies using social networks, the study is aimed to elucidating how they could be exploited to provide alternative sources of information, and allow communities and journalists to propose their own news agendas.

“It is now commonly accepted that social networks are an essential tool to reach wide audiences. Political campaigns, lobbyists or traditional media have realized that social networks provide an opportunity to increase their outreach,” part of the statement read.

In addition, UNESCO said the study would showcase the features of Web 2.0 social networks, which allows direct interaction with members, making it possible to design communication strategies based on member profiles and permitting any individual or community to disseminate information, to have more social impact and to influence the news agenda.

Although it is a fact that social networks are excellent information platforms, it is less clear how they must be used to maximize their potential in the field of journalism. Based on this, Consejo de Redacción is developing the Communication Lab on Social Networks.

This research, they said, attempt to answer the following questions: What are the communication strategies that generate audience through the use of social networks? What kind of stories are most widely shared and discussed? What is the news agenda of Internet in comparison with traditional media? What use should be made of new platforms? and What language should be used?

Equally, the study has intentionally avoided any publicity with partner organizations so that its findings could be extrapolated to any journalist or entity with a limited networking and information capacity.

Further, they said, the study started with the setting of a journalistic blog and its dissemination through different social networks such as Twitter, Facebook, Blogger, Youtube, Tumblr and Podbean.

The blog has already attracted a significant number of members with over 1,153 page views and 328 fans.

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MTN lifts Oganihu carnival in Ogwashi-Ukwu

Remmy Nweke:

MTN Nigeria has lifted the Oganihu carnival in Ogwashi Ukwu, Delta State with the sponsorship of the event.

The South East Regional Marketing Manager, MTN Nigeria, Mr. Dan Nwankwo, said that the indigenes of Ogwashi Ukwu in Delta State were excited to have MTN give boost to the first annual Ogwashi Ukwu Cultural Carnival, otherwise tagged “Oganihu Carnival,” which held on Christmas day.

He explained in a press statement available to Champion Infotech that the carnival is a celebration of cultural values and heritage of Ogwashi Ukwu Community, an initiative of a group known Ogwashi-Ukwu sons and daughters.

He also said that the event witnessed the convergence of indigenes of the community, both home and abroad, as well as guests and dignitaries who travelled from all over the country to rejoice over what was described as a new beginning for the community.

He pointed out that MTN Nigeria has become synonymous for supporting various cultural festivals across the country added glamour and excitement to the festival.

Nwankwo further said that MTN Nigeria is passionate about its customers’ aspiration which is why it supports cultural celebrations across the country, as a way of encouraging friendship and communal bonding.

Equally speaking, the Obi of Ogwashi-Ukwu, His Majesty, Professor Chukwuka Aninshi Okonjo expressed gratitude to the telecommunications company which he said has been a strong pillar of support for the community, without which their might not have been a successful carnival.

“We thank MTN Nigeria for their unflinching support and faith in our community. We appreciate their effort and association especially in the area of promoting our cultural values and sharing with us in the spirit of Christmas,” the Obi said.

The festival witnessed a large gathering of youths who converged at the carnival ground, dressed in flamboyant costumes and paraphernalia. They danced elegantly as they joined the carnival train, which moved round the town all the way to the carnival ground.

There were also various cultural dance groups, who took turn to perform unique dance steps and acrobatic displays round the ground after paying homage to the Obi. Prominent among these groups are the Egwu Amala Dancing group, Egwu-Olobo group, with flamboyant masquerades on display, the Okanga group, Egwu-Aja dancing group and the Egwu-Agbala group.

The event was rounded off with a wonderful stunt by the Ebu-Wonder group. At the height of its magical performance, the group conjured a colossal masquerade of about 35ft tall, out of a small wooden box.

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14 more winners get prizes @ Glo Text4million

Remmy Nweke

A total of 14 new lucky winners made up of traders, businessmen, students and pensioners emerged and have already taken possession of their prizes in the ongoing Season 2 of the Glo ‘text4millions” promo.

Each of the 14 winners went home with their N1m cheque at the Glo’s ‘Lord of the Ribs show’ in Ibadan.

The winners who received their prizes included Chukwudu Uche, a trader who sells CD’s in Owerri, Imo State, Rev. Ukandu Ucheya, pastor of the Assemblies of God Church in Trans Ekulu, Enugu, Ifeanyi Ihuoma, a trader in plumbing materials at Bridgehead, Onitsha, Mrs. Genevieve Elam, a civil servant in Umuahia, Abia State; Godwin Nwachukwu, a builder who lives in Abuja, Tochukwu Akabueze, a trader on clothing materials in Yaba, Lagos and Chimezie Obi a businessman who deals on plumbing and electrical materials in Lagos.

Others are Miss Victoria Olorunnisola a student from Minna, Niger State who is seeking admission into Kogi State University; Abubakar Lawan, a teacher and Islamic scholar from Kano, Onuorah Christopher a student from Nassarrawa who hopes to gain admission soon into the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka; John Gimsay, a civil servant working with the Plateau State House of Assembly in Jos, Godwin Edewor, a businessman from Warri, Delta State, Mrs. Deborah Oniwinde, a pensioner from Ido-Ani, Ondo State and Mr. Stephen Oke, a pensioner and former school principal in Ogbomosho, Oyo State.

Speaking at the occasion, some of the lucky winners expressed thanks to Glo for providing outstanding service to Nigerian telecom subscribers over the years and for changing their lives and those of their family members during the Xmas season.

They also had words of commendation for Glo for the honest and transparent manner in which it conducts its promos.

For Mr. Chimezie Obi, a dealer on plumbing and electrical materials, winning in the promo was totally unexpected.

“I am very, very happy. This is an unexpected gift from Glo. I will encourage those in my community and my Christian fellowship to use Glo. I want to be a Glo ambassador,” he said.

The three lucky students among the winners also praised Glo for changing their lives and for making them confident that they now have a chance at a good university education.

One of them, Miss Victoria Olorunsola stated, “I am seeking admission into Kogi State University. My sister encouraged me to play. I never thought I could win this kind of money in my life. I am extremely happy.”

Equally, for Rev. Ukandu Ucheya, the interactive and educative nature of the promo was the major factor that propelled him to play. “This is my first time of playing. I was attracted because of my interest in current affairs. My family shouted for joy! I will use the money to complete my building project which has been going on for about nine years”.

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Olubiyi decries slow pace of 3G deployment

The chief executive officer, Geoidtel, an Internet Service Provider (ISP) based in Lagos, Mr. Olubiyi Ismail, has decried the slow pace of deployment the Third Generation (3G) in Nigeria’s Information and Communication Technology (ICT) market.

Ismail who made his views known in Lagos at the weekend said that almost five years down the line after the initial licensing of most of the mobile communications networks to offer Third Generation (3G) services, Nigeria is yet to make 3G function at its best.

This, he said, would translate into effective use of the services and accompanied advantages adequately for the end-users.

He noted that when in 2006 the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) auctioned four 3G spectrum licenses to Globacom, MTN, then Vmobile, which is now Airtel as well as Alheri Engineering, expectations were high that Nigeria’s telecom landscape would receive a great boost.

“About five years after, not much has changed in Nigeria’s telecom sector,” he said.

3G, he said, is regarded as the next generation of mobile communications systems which
enhances services such as multimedia, high speed mobile broadband, internet access with the ability to view video footage on one’s mobile handset.

With a 3G phone and access to the 3G network one could make video calls, watch live TV, access the high speed internet, receive emails and download music tracks, as well as the usual voice call and messaging services found on a mobile phone, like person to person video, live streaming, downloadable video of entertainment, news, current affairs and sport content and video messaging.

“So why is 3G, which indeed has the semblance of triple play capabilities, not being utilised by the telecom operators in Nigeria,” he said.

The answer, according to him, is that operators are yet to be assured of steady revenue stream for their investment in 3G services.

“Indeed, some have chosen to partner advanced communications providers such as Cisco to help develop services such as tele- presence,” he said, wondering what would be tagged as successful deployment of triple play services in Nigeria.

This, he said, would be solely dependent on two factors, namely the capability of the company involved in its deployment and the creation of a conducive atmosphere for companies intending to offer triple play to thrive.

“Beyond theatrics, the next big thing in the Nigerian ICT landscape may well be triple play at the right cost to the people,” he said.

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