Nokia, Co-Creation Hub partner Futurice on ‘Growth Academy’

Mobile devices leader, Nokia and Co-Creation Hub (CCHUB) Nigeria have entered into a partnership with Finlad-based software house, Futurice to groom young Nigerian software entrepreneurs through ‘Growth Academy.’

Members of Game Acadamy phase 1 @ media launch with

Mr. Teemu Kiijarvi of Nokia West Africa, Mr Adetunji Eleso of

Co-Creation Hub and Mr. Paul Houghton of Futurice Finland

 

 

Speaking at the media presentation of the 10 members of the first enrolment into the Growth Academy, Head, Ecosystem and Developer Experience, Nokia West Africa, Mr. Teemu Kiijarvi, says Nigeria has a thriving and growing mobile software start-up scene with a lot of potentials for growth.

He also said that at Nokia, their objective with the Growth Academy is to support local talent in developing their skills and in growing their companies.

“Our aim is to integrate them into both regional and global markets and ensure future funding for growing their companies,” he declared.

As said by Kiijarvi, the Growth Academy is aimed at accelerating top Nigerian mobile software companies in growing their companies on regional and international levels.

He added that it’s the first of its kind business accelerator programme in Africa dedicated to providing intensive continuous hands-on support to help approximately thirty (30) early stage mobile technology start-ups grow into high growth businesses and build world class mobile applications for the Nokia platform regionally and globally.

He explained that the first programme of the Growth Academy commenced on May 10 and is expected to last July 2012, featuring 10 companies, with anticipation that at the end of three months, participants should have transformed into world class mobile application developers capable of launching products on the Nokia platform with full marketing support by Nokia.

“They will also have access to funding to scale their business through an investor presentation at the end,” he said.

 

Equally speaking, Director, Pre-Incubation and Research, Co-Creation Hub, Mr Adetunji Eleso described the Growth Academy programme as a novel accelerator programme in Nigeria, which will build the capacity of Nigerian technology start-ups to create world class applications that meet the real needs of Nigerian consumers.

Participants, he said, would have the opportunity to undergo hands-on and structured training with modules such as technology training and mentoring, business model development, implementation plan and lean product development which would build them to match up with local and global standards.

The participating 10 starts-up in the current progamme includes Efiko, MyCash, Ningo, Pledges51, Quadtech Mobile, RubiQube, Tiketmobile, Traclist, and Waserise.

ITREALMS Online ... delivering news for ICT4D

Nigeria grows teledensity by 6.12% in one year

ITRealms Exclusive

The Nigerian teledensity has recorded a growth rate of 6.12 per cent in the last one year, ITRealms Online can authoritatively reports.

Investigations by ITRealms Online on the latest monthly subscriber data rate made available to correspondents, for the period April 2011 through March 2012, shows that as at April last year, Nigeria’s teledensity was at 64.70 per cent, while as at the end of March 2012, it has grown to 70.82 per cent.

Although across the networks, namely Global System for Mobile (GSM) communications, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) and Fixed either wired or wireless have a total installed capacity of 176,662,992, by end of March 2012, some 134,913,614 were connected.

Out of the aforementioned connected lines, GSM recorded a whopping share 119,460,789, CDMA got 13,133,240, and Fixed wired cum wireless had 2,319,585.

Also, the total of active lines in use across the networks came to 99,145,013, out of which GSM’s share was put at 94,531,980, CDMA recorded 4,031,698, while Fixed wired and wireless was 599,335.

The period under review equally saw the installed capacity of the trio still with GSM subsector leading with 150,036,225, followed by CDMA networks with 17,232,725, the Fixed wired cum wireless industry maintained the last position with 9,394,042.

However, in the month of April 2011, the Nigeria’s teledensity declined from 64.70 to 64.65 in May of the same year, which amounts to a downward slope of 0.05 per cent and 0.03 in June 2011.

By July 2011, the teledensity has regained its growth rate and went on to surpass the month of April to record 64.88, which is about 0.18 per cent increase.

This growth was however, sustained henceforth till March 2012 by achieving 65.78 per cent in teledensity in August 2011; 66.76 in September, 67.09 in October, 68.13 in November and  68.49 by December 31, 2011.

While January 2012 saw a growth in teledensity to 68.68, February 69.01 and March this year having 70.82.

Remmy Nweke

ITREALMS Online ... delivering news for ICT4D

Internet usage for next billion under investigation

A Multilingual Internet Group (MLiGrp) is investigating the usability of the internet for the next billion netizens.

ITRealms Online gathered that this investigation is expected to have matured by 2013 with official launch of MLiGrp.

Just as the group anticipated that the next billions of internet-users would be those using Arabic, Urdu and Farsi as their native language and alphabets.

This group of people, according to MLiGrp, would form the centre of what their current experience of web-usability is like under the English language.

Also, ITRealms Online gathered that the debut of this MLiGrp officially will open the doors to many billions of customers, citizens, correspondents and contributors that currently are reported to have been excluded by the dominance of English and the western alphabet.

Although pages may be translated, most web addresses on demand are the American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII) script-based on the western alphabet, making it harder for those not familiar with these characters to navigate the web effectively.

To further strengthen its determination, the group launched a website, www.MLiGrp.com, to extend the market study of Internet usability focused on the Arabic, Urdu and Farsi regions, communities and languages.

Also, the study will aim to research the usability of the Internet to date, identify the remaining challenges for the coming Multilingual Internet and their coming multi-billion Netizens.

Although not limited to Internet users in the states where Arabic, Urdu and Farsi are generally used, but will include native speakers of these languages all over the world for whom their language has always been an extension of their heritage and identity especially on the Internet.

This development, obviously in response to the ICANN’s new generic Top Level Domain (gTLD) programme, recent efforts by the United Nations, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), and the U.S Department of Commerce, to extend the reach of the Internet, the research results will be invaluable to any business or organisation seeking to engage with new internet populations speaking these languages.

Speaking at the launch of the research project, Mr. Khaled Fattal, chairman of The Multilingual Internet Group, said they are thrilled at the prospect of this market study and of going directly to end users as citizens to tell what they want and need.

“We have also reached out to local country authorities and regulators whose responses to cooperate have been excellent. The study will either confirm what we know or teach us what we did not know,” he said.

Fattal also pointed out that in recent years, the Internet user needs and habits all over the world have changed; nowhere more so than in emerging markets and especially in the Arab world since the “Arab spring”. 

“Internet users have doubled in the region in the last 2 years and we expect this change to be more significant in 2013 and beyond. Times like these require diligent awareness of these changes and trends,” he said.

Remmy Nweke

ITREALMS Online ... delivering news for ICT4D

Airtel, GYADI partner on Coal City summit

Airtel CEO, Deepak Srivastava

Mobile telecommunications services provider, Airtel Nigeria is partnering the Global Youth Awareness & Development Initiatives (GYADI), to host the first-ever Information and Communications Technology (ICT) summit focusing on youth empowerment in Enugu tagged CoalCity ICT summit.

The summit with the theme ‘Refocusing Enugu Youth for Sustainable National Development with ICT,’ has been scheduled to hold on Friday, May 25th at the Golden Royal, Independence Layout, Enugu State.

A press statement made available to ITRealms Online by Erhumu Bayagbon of Airtel’s public relations, indicated that its aimed at promoting youth empowerment, educational development and local support for developmental initiatives by individuals, groups, organizations and governmental authorities.

He quoted the Chief Operating Officer and Executive Director, Deepak Srivastava, as saying Airtel is committed to partnering with the government at all levels as well as notable organizations in creating solid platforms for the development of the Nigerian youth. 

He also said, the summit was a clarion call heeded in good time given the current wave of ICT knowledge sweeping across the global community, just as he applauded the organisers for concerted efforts aimed at bridging the existing gap in ICT among the indigenes of the State.

Acquiring ICT knowledge, he said, is no longer an option anymore, adding that it’s basic as the food people eat, the clothes wear and the shelter over peoples’ head.

“The world now runs on ICT. This explains the need for and our interest in promoting ICT-focused knowledge,” he said.

The Chief Operating Officer also stated that Airtel has recorded several milestones in the ICT domain, saying that the company is always in the forefront in delivering innovative products and services such as My Airtel My Offer (MAMO) which runs on a unique ICT platform.

Barely two weeks ago, Airtel Nigeria commissioned the largest data centre in Airtel Africa. The data centre has 20, 000 square feet of equipment space and is to boost seamless network and billing services to its customers. 

It would also be recalled that in the first quarter of this year, Airtel Nigeria rolled out its pan-Nigeria 3. 75G data services across the 36 States of Federation plus the Federal Capital Territory. Airtel currently has the widest coverage and fastest speed of 3.75G network.

According to the organizers, the event will be attended by several dignitaries including the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu; Governor of Enugu State Sullivan Chime; Chairman, Senate Committee on Communications, Senator Gilbert Nnaji and top Airtel representatives among others.

Remmy Nweke

ITREALMS Online ... delivering news for ICT4D