AUDA-NEPAd, JICA launch strides in healthcare innovation - ITREALMS

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The AUDA-NEPAD, supported by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has launched a report that provides lessons learned and the strides made over the last three years in accelerating healthcare innovation across the continent.

The AUDA-NEPAD Home-Grown Solutions Accelerator (HGS) aims to accelerate home-grown solutions to strengthen Africa's pandemic resilience, in line with the African Union's Agenda 2063 aspirations.

Gambia applauds Nigeria’s strides in telecom regulation - ITREALMS

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The Gambian Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Ousman Bah, at the weekend in Abuja, said Nigeria’s giant strides in telecom regulation are the reason that the nation’s telecoms development has become a reference point.

Bah, who led a Gambian delegation, including industry regulators on a courtesy visit to the management of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in Abuja, said the visit was prompted by the success, which Nigeria has witnessed in the sector, and the need for The Gambia to follow the same path of success.

FG applauds NCC’s regulatory strides - ITREALMS

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The Federal Government has commended the leadership of the Nigerian Communications Commission for the remarkable strides of the agency that has earned spectacular international reputation for Nigeria and placed the telecom regulator in the forefront of the nation’s quest for forward looking national economic growth.

Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. William Alo, said this recently while receiving the management team of NCC, led by the Executive Vice Chairman of the Commission, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, who briefed him on the status of the industry after his recent appointment to the Ministry. 

Nelson Mandela Institute Abuja makes strong strides with cancer treatment

ITREALMS:

Just 17 years after Nelson Mandela sold the dream of a state of the art institution to drive Africa’s advancement in science and technology to former World Bank President Jim Wolfenssohn, the Abuja-based institution inspired by Mandela dream is making strong strides in the battle against cancer, reports ITRealms.

Three students of the African University of Science and Technology, Abuja, whose Board Chair is Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and President is Professor Kingston Nyamapfene, have in separate research efforts come up with very promising findings that are likely to make a difference in the global search for a cure to the deadly disease.

The studies include the work of Kwabena Kan-Dapaah on “Implantable Composite Devices for the Localised Treatment of Breast Cancer”; John David Obayemi’s work on Nano- Particles For Breast Cancer Detection And Treatment and Salifu T. Azeko’s work which was centred on “Biodegradation among others.

These efforts are in addition to the widely reported groundbreaking discovery in cancer treatment by a young Sierra-Leonian female student of African University of Science and Technology, Sandra Musujusu. Musujusu is developing an alternative treatment for a subtype of breast cancer commonly found in black women.

According to the student: “My research is actually centered on the development of biodegradable polymers for treatment of breast cancer… I will be focusing on triple negative breast cancer, which is actually the aggressive subtype of breast cancer that is common with women from African ancestry.”

The Sierra Leone native’s research was unveiled in July last year  when World Bank director Jaime Saavedra Chanduvi visited the Nigerian school as a part of his assessment tour of the 10 African Centers of Excellence locations, funded to encourage research to benefit African countries facing problems.

Uj. N. Dominic/GEE

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Queen Maxima thumbs up NCC on strides, pledges support on financial inclusion

ITREALMS:

Her Majesty, Queen Maxima of the Kingdom of The Netherlands, has thumbed up telecommuications regulator in the country, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) for its strides and pledging to support Nigeria on issues of financial inclusion, reports ITRealms.

Speaking Wednesday in Abuja during the visit to NCC, Queen Maxima, noted she was in Nigerian as part of her global itinerary for advocacy on financial inclusiveness to enhance individual and national development.

She also commended NCC’s robust regulation of telecommunication services in Nigeria, its collaboration on national financial inclusion strategy, and promised to support Nigeria to achieve greater safe, sound and sustainable financial inclusion.

The Queen, ITRealms gathered visited the Commission in her capacity as the Special Advocate of the United Nations’ Secretary General for Inclusive Finance for Development, was received with NCC’s renowned warmth and enthusiasm by the Executive Vice Chairman of the Commission, Professor Umar Danbatta, who led other management staff that include the Executive Commissioner Stakeholder Management, Mr. Sunday Dare.

Accordingly, Prof. Danbatta available statistics demand a strategic response to ensure greater financial inclusion in Nigeria, and recalled that Nigeria’s National Financial Inclusion Strategy is set to reduce the percentage of the financially excluded adult population in Nigeria to 20 percent by Year 2020 – as at 2016, about 40.1 per cent of the Nigerian adult population are financially excluded.

The EVC informed the Queen that NCC is very much committed to the actualization of the National Financial Inclusion Strategy.

“Just recently, the final draft of a Memorandum of Understanding between CBN and NCC was signed, and the CBN-NCC Joint Technical Committee on Mobile Money has instituted processes that will ensure that Mobile Network Operators (MNOs), register Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs), to enable them become Mobile Money Operators (MMOs)” Danbatta declared.

He  praised the Queen for her global efforts at promoting financial inclusion and noted that Her Majesty has been “a leading global voice advancing universal access to affordable, effective, and safe financial services”, a worthy duty and service which Her Majesty’s commitment to is further demonstrated by the visit to Nigeria and the Commission.

The Queen commended NCC for its numerous regulatory strides and in particular the Commission’s collaboration with other stakeholders especially the Central Bank of Nigeria to ensure greater financial inclusion in Nigeria. She said she was in Nigeria in 2012 when the National Financial Inclusion Strategy was instituted and prayed that Nigeria is able to sustain the ongoing collaboration to ensure the achievement of the Strategy targets.

Her Majesty cited Mexico among many nations that have made giants strides in rural connectivity, which is a critical backbone needed to enhance financial inclusion and terms of the identity factor which is also central to financial inclusion programmes, the Queen expressed delight that the National Identity Management Commission is on the right track in discharging its component of the responsibilities towards attaining greater financial inclusion.

On Her Majesty’s delegation is Seb Molineus of the World Bank; Sebnem Sener of the Office of the UN Secretary General’s Special Advocate for Financial Inclusion; Dr. Michael Wiegand of Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, all of who spoke about the potentials of Nigeria and the need to move steadily and quickly towards ensuring financial inclusion for all. Also on the delegation is Nigeria’s Dr. Abi Jagun, the Programme Officer of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s Financial Services for the Poor.

Her Majesty Queen Maxima of The Netherlands - mother of three, graduate of economics, and former investment banker – was appointed in 2009 as the Special Advocate of the United Nations Secretary General on Inclusive Finance for Development.

Uboshe Uboshe & Doris Minimah/GEE

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Pix; Queen Maxima in a group picture with EVC, Prof. Danbatta with some top management staff.

Gateway Trade Fair lauds Dangote Group on strides

Trade & Investment@ITRealms:

Organisers of the Gateway Trade Fair, the Ogun State Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (OGUNCCIMA) has lauded the pan African conglomerate, Dangote Group for its giant strides in economic development of the country through massive investments in several sectors of the economy describing the feat as worthy of emulation by other Nigerians, reports ITRealms.

President of OGUNCCIMA, Mrs. Adesola Adebutu who made this commendation at the opening ceremony of the 8th Gateway Trade Fair holding in Abeokuta Ogun state said the support given enough by the Dangote Group went a long way in making the staging of the Fair a success.

She explained that the theme of the Fair, “Promoting Agricultural Value Chain through SMES for Nigeria Economic Recovery”, was chosen in line with Ogun state’s policy of Agricultural industrialization which is also in consonance with the national policy of repositioning agriculture as the viable alternative to oil.

Mrs Adebutu stated that OGUNCCIMA was planned to be a clear departure from the past such that this year’s will rekindle the interest of the old investors and introduce new ones in new opportunities for its investments in Ogun State.

Ayo Midele/GEE
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