EROSION THREAT @2nd Niger Bridge: Critical infrastructure failure looms - ITREALMS

Urgent intervention is required to avert a major structural collapse and potential loss of lives at the Onitsha-Owerri Road interchange connecting the Second Niger Bridge, as severe gully erosion continues to undercut the main expressway, reports ITREALMS.

Field observations on Monday, August 17, 2026, revealed that persistent floodwaters have hollowed out the road's foundation by approximately 3 feet from the asphalt edge.

WATISE 2026: ipNX identifies ‘3 As’ as critical catalysts for African AI adoption - ITREALMS

Nigeria’s leading Information and Communications Technology (ICT) company, ipNX, has identified Accessibility, Affordability, and Availability (the "3 As") as the ultimate determinants that will dictate the pace, scale, and success of Artificial Intelligence (AI) integration across the African continent, reports ITREALMS.

This definitive position was the focal point of a lead paper presented on behalf of the company at the prestigious West Africa Telecoms Infrastructure Summit and Exhibition (WATISE) 2026, held on June 18, 2026, at the Oriental Hotel in Lagos.

DBI Insight: Broadband expansion remains critical to digital growth - ITREALMS

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Sustained investment in broadband infrastructure will be essential to supporting Nigeria’s digital transformation, particularly in underserved and rural communities.

DBI findings indicate that connectivity remains the backbone of digital services, influencing access, inclusion, and economic participation.

— Source: DBI Report (2026)

NITDA to South-South: State alignment critical to Nigeria’s digital economy goals - ITREALMS

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The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has called for intensified collaboration with sub-national governments, asserting that the success of Nigeria’s digital transformation hinges on the active participation of states, reports ITREALMS.

Speaking virtually at the South-South Regional ICT Stakeholders Forum, the Director General of NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa, emphasized that while federal policies have laid a strong foundation, the real impact occurs when these frameworks are domesticated and implemented at the grassroots level.

Nigeria's E-Waste crisis reaches critical mass, as regulators, industry demand unified national action - ITREALMS

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Nigeria's spiraling electronic waste problem has reached a critical juncture, demanding immediate, unified national action from all stakeholders, from top regulators to individual digital citizens.

This urgent call resonated profoundly at the 2025 ITREALMS E-Waste Dialogue in Lagos, where the nation's foremost environmental agency issued a stark warning, buttressed by appeals from the event's convener for a concrete national strategy.

AfriTECH 5.0: Rudman says local traffic exchange critical for Nigeria’s digital future - ITREALMS

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The Managing Director of the Internet Exchange Point of Nigeria (IXPN), Muhammed Rudman, has underscored the urgent need for Nigeria to strengthen its local traffic exchange ecosystem, describing it as a strategic national imperative for speed, security, and digital economic expansion.

Speaking during a presentation at the African Tech Alliance (AfriTECH) Forum on Thursday last week, Rudman explained that local traffic exchange, where ISPs, content providers, and networks exchange data within Nigeria rather than routing it through international paths, remains the backbone of a modern, efficient internet economy.

NCC: Securing Critical National Information Infrastructure is VIP - ITREALMS

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The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has underscored the importance of sustainability and security in the telecom industry, particularly with the designation of telecom infrastructure as Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII), reports ITREALMS.

Dr. Aminu Maida, Executive Vice Chairman and CEO of NCC, who was represented by Engr Edoyemi Ogoh - Director, Technical Standards and Network Integrity Department, emphasized that the industry contributes over 14.4% to Nigeria's GDP and underpins critical sectors like banking, energy, health, security, education, and governance.

Most Wanted Malware: Androxgh0st, targets IoT devices, critical infrastructure - ITREALMS

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The Check Point Software's latest threat index for November 2024 has highlighted the rise of Androxgh0st, a Mozi-integrated botnet, and ongoing threats from Joker and Anubis, showcasing evolving cybercriminal tactics, reports ITREALMS.

This is coming as Seven African countries are among the top 20 most attacked.

MOSOP: Lagos-Calabar coastal highway critical for national development - ITREALMS

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The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) has backed the construction of a 700km coastal highway from Lagos to Calabar describing it as a critical infrastructure for national development.

President of MOSOP, Fegalo Nsuke made the observation today when he met with a group of Ogoni Students at the national secretariat of MOSOP in Bori, headquarters of Khana local government area.

ICT plays critical role in combating financial crimes says EVC Maida - ITREALMS

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The Executive Vice Chairman/CEO, Nigerian Communications Commission, (NCC), Dr. Aminu Maida, has said that Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) play critical role in combating financial crimes, reports ITREALMS.

Speaking at the 11th annual lecture organised at the Lagos Sheraton, Ikeja on Tuesday by the RealNews Magazine & Publications Limited, as the guest of honour, Dr. Maida who dwelt on "Using ICT to fight illicit financial flows' posited that ICT has critical role to play beginning with the offering of the enabling real-time surveillance, regulatory compliance and secure data processing.

WATISE 2023 tackles critical telecoms infrastructure issues, assembles stakeholders - ITREALMS

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The maiden edition of the West Africa Telecoms Infrastructure Summit and Exhibition (WATISE) would be tackling the critical telecoms infrastructure issues, just as the organisers have assembled relevant stakeholders, reports ITREALMS.

A press statement available to ITREALMS from the organisers of WATISE, noted that respite beckons for telecoms consumers in West Africa over poor network issues as critical stakeholders in the industry converge in Lagos, Southwest Nigeria to proffer solutions on the challenges of telecoms Infrastructure which is affecting the growth of the region’s digital economy.

Electric Vehicles critical technologies for clean energy transition says Marisa Lago - ITREALMS

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The Electric Vehicles (EVs) have been described as critical technologies capable of facilitating clean energy transition the world is yearning for, reports ITREALMS.

Speaking at the Microsoft Garage Electric Vehicle Hackathon in Lagos, the United States (US) Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade, Marisa Lago on Monday, also said that Electric Vehicles could create new economy jobs.

Diversifying critical material supply chains minimises geopolitical risks - ITREALMS

The energy transition requires a dramatic increase in the supply of critical materials, yet their supplies chains remain vulnerable to a range of geopolitical risks. 

While there is no scarcity of reserves for energy transition minerals, global capabilities for mining and refining them are limited.

Danbatta @GOCOP confab'22: Telecom infrastructure critical to successful 2023 Elections - ITREALMS

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The Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission, Prof. Umar Danbatta, has said telecom infrastructure is very critical to successful 2023 elections, therefore, every Nigerian in every community should join hands in protecting it for the benefit of the country, reports ITREALMS.

Danbatta, who was special guest at the 6th Edition of the Annual Conference of Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP) in Lagos at the weekend, with focus on the forthcoming election and the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu in attendance, said with the planned transmission of election data and results riding on telecom infrastructure, there was need to ensure the fidelity of the transmission systems to enhance the credibility of such data.

ICT experts harp on critical infrastructure needs in Nigeria - ITREALMS

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Panelists at the just concluded NITRA ICT Growth Conference 2.0, have emphasized the need for an urgent review of Nigeria’s state of infrastructure so as to position the country to massively reap the benefits of a digital economy as obtained in some developed nations of the world.

Themed ‘Creating a Digital Ecosystem in Nigeria: The Hurdles, The Gains,’ the panelists drawn from both the public and private sector establishments, were of the consensus that infrastructure provisioning remained Nigeria’s surest pathway to building a robust digital economy.


At a second panel session during proceedings at the NITRA flagship technology conference held at the Oriental Hotel, Lekki Lagos, and moderated by Mr. Peter Oluka, Editor of TechEconomy.ng, the panelists agreed that efforts at building Nigeria’s digital economy cannot yield the much-desired fruit unless there is sustained commitment on the part of the government to prioritise the provision of infrastructure.


Seyi Olarenwaju, CFO of Medallion Data Centre said infrastructure is going to play a vital role in enhancing digital systems in Nigeria’s digital ecosystem, noting that “if there is no infrastructure in place, there is nothing.”


He stated that since governance has now been replaced by electioneering campaigns in preparation for the 2023 general election, the incoming administration should be focused, identify a particular infrastructure, and fix it, and expressed the hope that if in this regard, power is given priority attention, a lot of things will follow suit.


Kelechukwu Nsofor of Rack Centre, a carrier-neutral Tier III data centre who spoke from a data centre provider’s perspective, said power is the key infrastructure that drives a data centre business, describing it as basically the livewire of any data centre.


According to Nsofor, “The key infrastructure that we rely on is power. Power is basically the livewire of any data centre. Unfortunately, if you go back to 1999 since we started the current democratic dispensation in the country, what has been the installed capacity in terms of power? 20 years down the line, where are we today in terms of power?


“At a point, we were generating 1600MW, today, it’s still hovering around 3000MW. Where does that leave us as an economy of over 200 million people? So, if you look at the population growth rate and try to compare it with what we are growing in terms of power, you see that there’s a total disconnect.”


He said that Nigeria is blessed with a rich reservoir of policies and knowledge expertise but expressed worries that this has not been translated to results in the country’s power industry.


“Now, tying that to Rack Centre and indeed the data centre space, we have been generating our own power in the last nine years that we have been operating. And we’ve been fully in control of generating that power now. As we look to expand, we are also looking at ways where we can continue to generate power or do it more cost-effectively.


“We would like a situation where the government will actually stop the lip service that goes into infrastructure like power and actually start showing serious commitment by playing a major role in the provisioning of power infrastructure,” he said.


Noting that the digital economy is all about using the internet basically to push economic activities, Nsofor stated that what is critical even with the efforts at bringing in foreign direct investment, all the marine cables sitting on the coast of Lagos, is how to work with the private sector and knowledge experts basically on how to get things like multiple taxations and right of way out of the road.


“Operators can now push that capacity where it is actually needed. This will help us increase internet penetration, increase the digital economy growth, and push the economy forward,” he concluded.


In his contribution to the discourse, Babalola Olalekan of Phase 3 Telecoms admitted that the government was doing enough to provide infrastructure but stated that there was a need for stronger synergy between the government and service providers.


“There was a document released last year called Strategic Roadmap/Action Plan: A four-year plan 2021-2024. The key performance indices released in that document classified infrastructure in such categories as soft, service and hardware.


“When you look at the hardware infrastructure, we talk about how far we’ve gone in hardware infrastructure deployments like fibre cables. We talk of active devices and so on and so forth. But there’s something the government has put in place especially at the federal level by cutting down right-of-way charges all over the federation.


“Another area we have taken advantage of is the concession plan we call public-private partnership (PPP), where I expect the operators and players to key into and take advantage of our existing infrastructure, and opportunities.


“Another thing I will encourage we should be doing is a collaboration among players. All of us can only fight about a particular position or location. We can join hands on how to collaborate, leverage each other, and supply as a single network.


“So, I think the government is doing enough with policies. The onus is on us to tap into it, put more pressure on the government and be more up and doing in our collaborative efforts and take advantage of what is available to us through the government,” Olalekan said.

He said that going into the 2023 election, the most important thing to be focused on is security, stating that operators have many works to do out there in the field yet, they find it difficult to restore the network in the shortest possible time. “So, whatever government can do to make sure that our roads, our villages, our towns are secured, we will surely have a good general election.”


Chidi Okpala of Galaxy Backbone, in his intervention, acknowledged the fact that government understands the importance of infrastructure in growing the country’s digital economy, noting that one of the things the current administration holds dear to its heart, is infrastructure.


“Have they done all the things expected of them as government? Maybe not. But have they made some efforts in bridging the infrastructure gap? The answer is yes. But there is a whole lot of learning, a whole lot of training in trying to create that awareness, into fully understanding how this impacts the day-to-day living of everyone.


“As an organisation, what we are trying to do is to bridge that gap of understanding especially, people in leadership level in government; to let them understand this is what this infrastructure stands for, this is what it is all about. It is not just for sending emails but how it affects your life, your family, and the work that you do.


“We have done quite a lot together with some of the other organisations within the information technology space in the public sector. We are still doing a lot to raise that awareness of what this infrastructure means so that people can understand more and collaborate more.


“Collaboration is the key, talking about the benefits and not dwelling more on talking about the problems because sometimes when we do that, we cloud ourselves of the opportunities around us,” he said.


Okpala expressed the need for policymakers to be much more intentional about what the country is doing, how it the affects everyone, and how the efforts at building the country’s digital economy can be sustained.
The session, which was anchored by the Editor of TechEconomy, Mr. Peter Oluka, was unanimous with the position that infrastructure is the bedrock of ICT development and global competitiveness in Nigeria.

Data Governance: Africa needs Internet core values for critical development - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

Founding president of the Africa ICT Alliance (AfICTA), Dr Jimson Olufuye, has said that Africa needs Internet core values for critical development and improve data governance, reports ITREALMS.

Olufuye listed these values to include openness, transparency, inclusivity, collaboration, effectiveness, sustainability, responsiveness, peace, trust to name a few, just as he beckoned on African policy makers to pay attention to these values to stimulate critical development for the continent.

Speaking recently in Accra-Ghana during the 2019 Africa Geospatial Data and Internet Conference on “Internet Governance for all round Development (IG4D),” Olufuye said that shaping the Africa’s digital future entails special and serious attentions from the policy makers.

“They should pay serious attention to those core values such that geospatial and other critical developmental data are open and transparently accessible for innovation and creativity to thrive for the continuous growth and development of our economies,” he declared.

Olufuye, who is one of the five global business representatives to the United Nations Commission for Science and Technology for Development Working Group on Enhanced Cooperation (WGEC 1.0 & 2.0) pointed out that it will propel the realization of the Sustainable Development Goals on the continent of Africa and bridge the digital divide.

“And for more jobs to be created for our large youth population,” he said.

On the nexus of geospatial data, the Internet Governance and the SDGs, he said that geospatial data has everything to do with cadastral information of a country, hence, “It is a major national resource data which has the potential if well managed to be the fulcrum of prosperity of any nation.”

Olufuye, who equally is the chief executive officer, Kontemporary Konsulting, said that with available Internet tools, this resource could be better managed in an open, transparent and accountable manner for the benefit of the people.

“So, the nexus of geospatial data and Internet Governance is the values that drive them to enable benefits for all,” he said, stressing that these values include openness, transparency, inclusivity, collaboration, effectiveness, sustainability, responsiveness, peace, trust to name a few.

With the holistic use of geospatial data engendered by Internet Governance principles, he said, it would be possible that citizens could derive better values for their land thereby boosting their purchasing power with the attendant eradication of poverty, hunger, ill-health, illiteracy, gender inequality, and clean water and sanitation would be available.

Submitting that “Goal 15: Life on Land and goal 17: Stronger Stakeholder Partnership are benefits that would also result in proactive geospatial data governance.”

Chuks Egbuna/Editor
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Accurate, timely information critical for national unity, democracy growth, says Lai - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has said that access to accurate and timely information is critical to enhancing citizens' participation in governance, the strengthening of national unity and the growth of democracy in the country, reports ITREALMS.

The Minister was quoted by his SA Media, Segun Adeyemi, in a press statement made available to ITREALMS from London, in his presentation on the topic ''Nigeria's National Unity: Toward Participation and Shared Values,’’ at the Chatham House in London on Wednesday.

He also said that in line with the mandate of the Ministry of Information and Culture, which includes the strategic communication of government's policies and programmes, he has embarked on programmes to keep the citizenry fully informed about government activities and also to get feedback from them.

Alhaji Mohammed listed such programmes as the Town Hall Meeting, regular engagements with stakeholders, touring of federal government projects across the country, the government information portal FGNiApp and regular media intervention, among others.

He said shortly after he assumed office, he took local and foreign journalists on a tour of the liberated part of the North-east to see the battle against Boko Haram first hand and report it vividly to Nigerians to get their buy-in and also for them to appreciate the renewed efforts by the military to decimate the insurgents.

‘’We also realized early on that for democracy to grow, it is important to ensure citizens’ participation in decision and policies affecting their lives – especially in a direct manner, rather than through their elected representatives only. This informed our decision to launch the Town Hall Meeting series in which cabinet Ministers meet, in a town hall setting, a cross section of Nigerians from all walks of life, with a view to keeping them informed about government policies and programmes and, at the same time, getting their feedbacks and inputs,’’ the Minister said.

He said the tour of government’s projects was also initiated to intimate the citizenry with the massive infrastructural projects of the Federal Government

‘’Since coming into office, the Administration of President Muhammadu Buhari has embarked on an unprecedented renewal of the nation’s infrastructure, investing an unprecedented 2.7 trillion Naira on roads, rails, power and other similar projects. But it is not enough to embark on these projects, it is also important to let the public know the extent and spread of such projects to foster a sense of national unity.

‘’This explains why we kick-started a nationwide tour of Federal Government projects, with not less than 25 journalists accompanying me on each trip. Till date, we have inspected many of such projects, including the new Lagos to Kano standard gauge rail line, the Lagos-Ibadan expressway in the Southwest that connects the port city of Lagos to other parts of the country, the new intra-city rail line connecting the Abuja city centre to the international Airport, the Enugu-Port Harcourt freeway and the second Niger Bridge in the South-east and the Ilorin-Jebba-Mokwa road in central Nigeria,’’Alhaji Mohammed said.

He said the FGNiAPP was launched to provide up-to-date information about government’s projects and policies to the people, irrespective of where they are.

The Minister also said he had regularly met with the various media stakeholders in Nigeria, to discuss with them government policies and programmes, listing some of such groups as the Broadcasting Organization of Nigeria (BON), the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN) and Online publishers.

‘’We have also gone beyond the shores of Nigeria to meet with the global media, policy think tanks and decision makers, especially in the United Kingdom and the United States. My current visit to London is the latest of such visits,’’ he said

Alhaji Mohammed said that in the run-up to the 2019 general elections, Nigeria faces a new challenge, a threat not just to the country's peace and security, but indeed its very existence.It is the dual challenge of fake news and hate speech.

''Yes, the fake news problem is not unique to Nigeria, but it poses a more potent threat to the country because of its multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-cultural status. It is also a clear and present danger to the nation’s unity. Naysayers have latched onto the fake news phenomenon to exploit the country’s fault lines and inflame passion,’’ he said

He said the National Campaign Against Fake News was launched to tackle the problem by sensitizing Nigerians to the dangers posed by fake news.

The Minister assured of the government’s continued effort to remain dynamic in providing information to the people, both within and outside Nigeria.

Chuks Egbune/GEE

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Pix: The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, addressing Chatham House in London on Wednesday.

NITRA breakfast: Nigeria needs 72 data centres, demands critical infrastructure status

ITREALMS:

Stakeholders in the Nigeria's data centre industry have disclosed that the nation requires some 72 data centres nationwide to make access to data much accessible to the populace, reports ITRealms.

Leading discussion on this at the weekend was the Managing Director, Medallion Communications Limited, Mr. Ike Nnamani, his counterpart in MDXi Mr. Gbenga Adegboye and Mr. Tunde Coker of Rack Centre represented by Director of Operations, Mr. Ezekiel Egboye, agreed on various degree of expansion of data centre operations beyond the city of Lagos, just as they were in tandem that data centre be declared a critical infrastructure.

As of today, almost all the data centres in Nigeria are located in Lagos, the commercial nerve centre of the country.

They made this known at the first-ever 2018 ‘Breakfast Meeting With The CEO’ held Friday at Protea Hotel, Ikeja GRA by the Nigeria Information Technology Reporters Association (NITRA).

For Mr. Nnamani, Nigeria needs at the least 72 data centres across the country, that is, estimated 2 data centres per the 36 states of the federation, to bring the access to these data closure to the people, given the population and vast land in Nigeria.

He also noted that the level of velocity in accessible data currently suffers extensive buffering on the network when accessed from the northern and eastern parts.

Also reacting to this discussion, the General Manager, MDXi, Mr. Gbenga Adegbiji, endorsed this position, saying it would bolster the data centre industry in the country to take its rightful place among the West African states.

This, he also said could translate into more cheap connectivity, more flexibility on network choices thereby improving end-user experiences.

In addition, he said when more data centres are in place, there will be extensive higher connectivity redundancy across network performances with accompanying lower latencies.

“Leverage multiple network options to connect seamlessly to end users,” he declared.

For Director of Operations at Rack Centre, Lagos, Mr Ezekiel Egboye, Nigeria has insufficient technology infrastructure as far as data centre is concerned.

Nigeria, according to him, would have to invest more in technology infrastructure for the centres to be among global competitive, insisting that data centre connectivity and service play significant role in an economy.

“There should be an enabling environment to do with good power supply, capable manpower and proper control, ” he said.

Earlier in his opening remarks, the chairman of NITRA, Mr. Emma Okonji, said that the world nowadays is increasingly exploiting information technology for innovative services and competitive advantage, thus data centre plays a rapidly expanding role in job creation and preservation as well as the overall economic recovery as big data soars in Nigeria.

He also pointed out to the fact that Nigeria has witnessed significant investments in data centres being established in the country, stressing that availability of world class Data centres in Nigeria will spur critical infrastructure required for the implementation of the country’s Broadband initiatives among others.

The theme for this breakfast, ITRealms reports was “Data Centre Operation In Nigeria: Impacts, Benefits And Challenges In a Knowledge Economy.”

Chuks Egbune/GEE

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Democracy: Ekwueme helped Nigeria navigate critical points - Tinubu

ITREALMS:

The All Progressives Congress (APC) National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has disclosed that the intellectual interventions of former Vice President, Dr. Alex Ifeanyichukwu Ekwueme helped Nigerian in navigating critical junctures, ITRealms.

He said this in a condolence message sent to the family of Dr. Ekwueme who died on Sunday in a London hospital at 85, through Tunde Rahman of Tinubu Media Office, made available to ITRealms in Lagos.

According to Asiwaju Tinubu, “I mourn the passing of Second Republic Vice President, Dr. Alex Ifeanyichukwu Ekwueme (GCON), who died on Sunday in London at 85.

“Chief Ekwueme lived well. He also served his country well. He was a true patriot and statesman who made personal sacrifices for the unity and stability of Nigeria.

“His deep intellectual interventions often helped the country in navigating beyond critical junctures. 

“Chief Ekwueme was a team player. As Vice President, he worked well with his principal, President Shehu Shagari. He was loyal to his boss and faithful to his country.

“As he contributed to Nigeria’s stability through his interventions, he also made laudable contributions to Nigeria’s political lexicon.

“It was Chief Ekwueme who at the 1994-95 Constitutional Conference in Abuja suggested the six geo-political zones as a more realistic structure to create a more equitable system. This has stuck till date. The structure is also often cited in appointment-distribution and calculation.

“Dr. Ekwueme was a fine gentleman and a good family man.  I mourn with his family. I mourn with the government and people of Anambra State. I mourn with Nigeria, for we have all lost a patriot.

“I pray that our country be blessed with more of Dr. Ekwueme. I pray that God grant his family the strength to live with this loss and that He also grant the soul of Dr. Ekwueme eternal rest”.

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