Unlocking grassroots tech @NITRA confab'26: How state tax traps, high RoW costs stifle Nigeria’s digital economy - ITREALMS

Nigeria’s push for global digital competitiveness is facing a critical bottleneck as telecom operators grapple with hidden state-level levies, exorbitant Right-of-Way (RoW) fees, and crippling power deficits, reports ITREALMS.

This was the core warning issued by technology leaders, policy analysts, and industry stakeholders at the Nigeria Information Technology Reporters Association (NITRA) Innovative and Scientific Conference held on Thursday at Citi Height Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos.

Transparency: EITI rates NNPC high in global assessment - ITREALMS

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The global transparency body, Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), has scored the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) very high in its latest global assessment, reports ITREALMS.

Confirming this in a press statement available to ITREALMS, the Chief Corporate Communications Officer, NNPC Limited, Mr. Olufemi Soneye quoted EITI’s Deputy Executive Director, Mr. Bady Baldé, saying he made this disclosure during a visit by an EITI delegation to the Group Chief Executive Officer of the NNPC Ltd, Mr Mele Kyari, in Abuja on last Thursday.

Impunity! Killings journalists is unacceptably high at 86% says UNESCO - ITREALMS

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The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has released a damning figure of impunity against journalist, lamenting that killings have reached unacceptably high at 86 per cent, reports ITREALMS.

UNESCO, a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) has published its latest figures on the global impunity rate for journalists’ killings.

Nigerians rank media, NGOs high on trust

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The Nigerian media and non-governmental organisations have topped scale of trustworthy entities with 78 per cent and 81 per cent respectively, reports ITRealms.

Affirming this, the Managing Director cum Chief Strategist, Chain Reactions Nigeria, Israel Jaiye Opayemi, in a welcome speech at the unveil in Lagos, said the inclusion of Nigeria in the annual survey for the first in the 18-year-old history of Edelman Trust Barometer was in fulfillment of the company’s promise last year to ensure Nigeria was in focus among the comity of nations of reckon annually sampled by Edelman.  

“Trust sits at the heart of social capital. For those who were here last year, we made a promise that Nigeria would be included in the 2018 deck of the Edelman Trust Barometer. I am happy to announce that we are here today to fulfill that promise,” he declared.

Opeyemi pointed out that the report showed the media and non-governmental organisations in Nigeria as trustworthy with 78 per cent of Nigerians saying they still trust the media despite the rise of fake news, while 81 per cent affirmed their trust in NGOs. 

“The trust score for business is 62 per cent, while government has 60 per cent,” he said.

Stressing that on these indices said, trust in NGOs was indicative of the fact that people acknowledge social interventions and humanitarian services rendered by non-governmental organisations in Nigeria, especially during some of the major disasters the country has witnessed which left thousands homeless.

He however cautioned that businesses and governments are already sitting in what he called ‘the cusp of the neutral zone’ and so must urgently improve on their trust asset so they do not slide into what he described as ‘negative zone.’

He noted that from the survey, Nigerians place a high premium on trust, which emphasized the importance for the business leaders to ensure that the company is trusted by communicating regularly with clients and customers, and their products and services are of high quality. They must also communicate regularly with employees and the CEOs must champion the effort.”

The Special Guest of Honour and Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Dr. Idiat Adebule, in her remarks commended Chain Reactions Nigeria for doing the country proud by ensuring the inclusion of Nigeria on the list of the countries surveyed by Edelman, and expressed confidence that the insights from the report would go a long way in better understanding how trust can be leveraged as an asset to improve relations between the government and the governed as well as service delivery from the government to the people.

Represented by the Director-General, Office of Education Quality Assurance, Lagos State Ministry of Education, Ronke Shoyobo, the deputy governor said: “No doubt, this year’s report and the debate of its implications by eminent representatives of the Nigerian government, the business community, the media and non-governmental organisations here today will strengthen the fabric of healthy relations and communications in our nation, particularly government intervention policies and programmes.”

The President, Public Relations Consultants’ Association of Nigeria, John Ehiguese, and President, Africa Public Relations Association, Yomi Badejo-Okusanya, in their goodwill messages affirmed that trust is everything in today’s world and organisations must do everything possible to build trust and credibility and maintain same in order to remain attractive to their stakeholders.

Moderated by Data Analyst, Channels Television, Babajide Ogunsanwo, members of the panel included Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Kehinde Bamigbetan; Shoyobo; respected Financial and Investment Analyst and CEO of Financial Derivatives, Bismarck Rewane; Lead Consultant/CEO of Thistle Praxis, Ini Abimbola; and Executive Head of Marketing and Communications, Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc, Nkiru Olumide-Ojo.

Others were seasoned journalist and Editor of BusinessDay newspaper, Anthony Osae-Brown; President, Guild of Corporate Online Publishers, Dotun Oladipo; Executive Chairman, Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, Comrade Debo Adeniran; and Public Affairs commentator, Comrade Nelson Ekujumi.

Dignitaries at the presentation ceremony cut across the four mainstream institutions of the Nigerian society such as government, business, media and non-governmental organisations as well as the Nigerian marketing communications sector.

They included Lagos State Commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources, Wale Oluwo, represented by a Director in the Ministry, Adebayo Ajisebutu; Vice President, Centre for Value and Leadership, Adegbenro Rasheed; Chairman, Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, Lagos State Chapter, Olusegun McMedal; Chairman/CEO, C&F Porter Novelli and past president of PRCAN, Nn’emeka Maduegbuna; CEO, Blueflower Communications, Chido Nwakanma; CEO, SY &T Communications, Simon Tumba; CEO, TruContact, Dr. Ken Egbas; Chief Operating Officer, Soulcomms Publicis, Moji Saka; Chief Operating Officer, BlackHouse Media, Moruff Adenekan; and Lead Consultant, StepCraft, Eniola Mayowa.

Chuks Egbune/GEE

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Experts decry high cost of Internet data in Africa

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Some digital rights experts have questioned the high cost of Internet data in many African countries, saying the prohibitive cost makes it difficult for many citizens with poor economic means to access the Internet, reports ITRealms.

They made their views known at the just concluded Internet Freedom Forum organised by Paradigm Initiative at the Federal Capital, Abuja, Nigeria.

Speaking at the Forum, the co-founder of Witness Radio, Jess Ssebaggala said, "The Internet is still expensive for too many people in many countries which is a big problem for expanding access. There are too many people below the poverty line in many African countries and it would be difficult to expand access to internet without reducing the cost of access for users."

Also speaking on the subject, the Executive Director of Internet Without Borders, Julie Owono said, "There's no point talking about digital rights when there is no access to digital technologies and the Internet."

Experts who spoke at the 3-Day international forum were drawn from from over thirty African countries. They took their turn to speak on the state of internet in their respective countries and the danger facing the openness of internet.  

For the Director of Programmes of Paradigm Initiative, Tope Ogundipe, “it is obvious from the conversation that so many African countries suffer from blatant rights violations, mostly perpetrated by the government. African countries should invest in expanding access to the internet instead of wasting resources on shutting down the internet and spying on their citizens. In a continent where internet penetration is still below 50%, we should not be begging government not to shut down the internet.”

Uboshe Uboshe/GEE

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