Digital IQ for African companies on decline - PwC

ITRealms:

The latest PwC’s Global Digital Intelligent Quotient (IQ) survey has shown that African companies IQ has been on decline as enterprises struggle to return value, overlooking fundamental integration of technology with the human experience, reports ITRealms.

Most organisations around the world, ITRealms gathered, have not done enough to keep up with the digital era and leadership is falling short, with many chief executives yet to fully engage in the initiatives of digital transformation.

This is coming despite 10 years of continued investment and commitment from top executives.

African companies match their global peers in many measures of Digital IQ: just over half (52 per cent) rate their organisation’s Digital IQ as strong – a score of 70 per cent or greater. 

However, South African companies stand at risk, with less than half (47 per cent) rating their organisation’s IQ over 70 per cent.

Tielman Botha, Digital Lead for PwC South Africa said, these are some of the highlights from the 10th edition of PwC’s Global Digital IQ survey, with a focus on Africa.

“Digital IQ has a different meaning today than it had when PwC started this research a decade ago. Today, the scope and scale of digital-driven change has grown significantly, and organisations have invested a lot of time and money to keep up.

“Despite notable advances in technology, company leaders are no better equipped to handle the changes coming their way than they were in 2007, according to the survey results,” he said.

ITRealms gathered that Digital IQ is the measurement of an organisation’s ability to harness and profit from technology has actually declined since we began asking executives to self-assess their own organisations, comments Botha. As this year’s survey shows, many companies are grappling with raising their Digital IQ. There is awareness that digital capabilities are a critical component to success, and that emerging technologies have to be explored. But leaders remain challenged by the need to transform their organisations to truly integrate digital into the company’s culture.

Nonye Dom/GEE

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Democracy Day: Tinubu warns of anti-democratic forces

ITRealms:

The former Lagos State governor and All Progressives Congress (APC) national stalwart, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has warned Nigerians to be wry of anti-democratic forces, calling for vigilance, reports ITRealms.

Nigerians he enjoined to keep and nurture democracy, nor for the sake of democracy but for the sake of the country.

“We must remember that should we fall asleep, there are those who would like nothing better than to take it from us,” he said in his message on the occasion of this year’s Democracy Day and 2^nd year of President Muhammadu Buhari administration.

Tinubu said Nigerians should remain vigilant and “by doing so ensure a better future and better Nigeria for ourselves and our progeny”.

A press statement was issued on Sunday in Lagos by Tinubu Media Office and signed by his Media Adviser, Mr. Tunde Rahman.

In the terse statement, the APC national stalwart said: “Democracy Day and our commemoration of it must be more than an empty ritual. It must add up to more than another reason to have another holiday.

“We, as a people, choose democracy as our preferred form of governance not because it would be easy to achieve or to hold even once we have it. We choose democracy because history has taught us that the welfare of the people is best and perhaps only secured by government responsive and accountable to the people. This can only be democracy.

“Many Nigerians have fought and sacrificed to enshrine democracy as our way of governance. We mark this day in honour of these people many of whom laboured in obscurity and without proper thanks to achieve this precious thing for the nation. 

“We mark this day to keep in remembrance that we must not take this good form of government for granted. We must keep and nurture it, not for democracy’s sake but for our own sake. We must remember that should we fall asleep, there are those who would like nothing better than to take it from us. We must remain vigilant and by doing so ensure a better future and better Nigeria for ourselves and our progeny.

“Thus, I congratulate Nigerians on this day. I congratulate President Muhammadu Buhari and urge him and his administration to continue to do all it can to protect and improve our democratic way of life. I wish all Nigerians a happy Democracy Day,” he said.

Ayo Midele/GEE  

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APC primaries turn bloody in Oshodi-Lagos, Police on alert

ITRealms:

The Nigeria Police has confirmed, at least, the death of the chairman, Lagos State Okada riders, Rasak Bello, at the All Progressive Congress (APC) councillorship primary in Ladipo-Sogunle ward in Oshodi-Isolo Local Government Area of Lagos, reports ITRealms.

The Lagos State PoliceCommand, spokesperson, Olarinde Famous-Cole, confirmed this, although he refused to put figure to scores of death allegedly killed at the exercise from other parts of the state.

But ITRealms gathered that Rasak Bello was shot dead when opposing happy-trigger gang arrived at the ward and venue of the councillorship primary and opened fire.

Also, ITRealms gathered there were other scores of death arising from the attack, which caused the Police to be on alert patrol in Oshodi throughout Monday for fear of reprisal.

Popularly known as Hamburger, Rasak Bello died on the way to a hospital in the Oshodi vicinity and leaving its wake, fears among residents.

The attack left many reported injured.

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The Eagle Online returns

ITRealms:

The management of online newspaper, published by Premium Eagle Media Limited, has announced the return of The Eagle Online, after a few days break, reports ITRealms.

Disclosing this, the Managing Editor of the newspaper, Dotun Oladipo told ITRealms that they took a break to enable it change its host service and put in place a new theme, both of which have been fully accomplished.

“Some of those who have visited the news website since it was reactivated have described it as reader friendly and fast on both handheld devices and desktops,” he said.

Oladipo noted that while the tasks appeared to have been accomplished, there may be few challenges yet to be noticed by the IT team working behind the scene to make The Eagle Online available to the reading public and cherished advertisers.

“In case you our dear reader encounter any challenge, please do let us know so we may quickly rectify it” Oladipo said.

He further said the newspaper could be reached via mobile and WhatsApp number 08094000057 and email: info@theeagleonline.com.ng for any complaint.

“The aim of the break is to give our advertisers and readers a whole new experience to make it worth their money and time. Our goal, ultimately, is to offer better service,” he assured.

Uboshe Uboshe/GEE

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World Communications Day ‘17: Adewale-Martins urges media to ‘fear not’

ITRealms:

Rev. Sr. Stephanie Olagunju, Monsignor Gabriel Osu, Monsignor Benard Okodua,
who stood-in for Archbishop Adewale Martins. With them are
Mrs Grace Achum, Mr. Futnatus Dawodu, at the press conference.

The Catholic Archbishop of Lagos, His Lordship, Most Rev. Dr. Alfred Adewale Martins, has urged Nigerian media and communications practitioners to remain steadfast in discharge of their duties, so as to make leadership accountable at all times, reports ITRealms.

Speaking through the Episcopal Vicar, Mainland Region, Monsignor Benard Okodua, at a press conference to mark the 2017 World Communications Day at the Holy Cross Cathedral, Onikan-Lagos, the Archbishop asked media and communications practitioners in general to remain vocal in exposing wrong values in the Nigerian society, including gay marriages, and domestic violence to name a few.

He noted that there is so much selfishness and insincerity among the political elites, because those in authority do not know why they are in position of authority, coupled with huge sums of money being discovered here and there without being claimed or accounted for.

According to him, such as domestic violence was not as high as it is today, but “it has increased because of lack of communications; following economic recession, and social causes, but could be controlled.”

Media, the Archbishop said, could help by speaking against these vices as he prayed for economic improvement, with so much confidence it will bring about reduction in domestic violence and growing divorce, for instance.

He also warned that Nigerians should not expect miracle from the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, just as the church wishes Buhari and his team well for them to succeed.

He further advised christians to embrace politics so as to improve the lot of the people rather than staying away.

Nigeria, he said, has reached a stage of which people should be free to air their views without any fear of molestation, buttressing the theme of this year’s World Communications Day.

He further condemned gay marriage, saying it’s against the will of God for man, which was precisely stated in the Bible which is good for humanity and culture.

Gay marriage, he insisted, is not the way of rearing children as directed by God and pointed out that the Nigerian nation, belongs to all Nigerians, asserting that Nigerians, especially Catholic media and associated communications practitioners should not be afraid in carrying out their responsibilities.

ITRealms recalls that the message of His Holiness Pope Francis to the 51^st World Communications Day, 2017, focused on ‘Fear not, for I am with you (Is 43:5)’.

Chuks Egbune/GEE

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Pix 1: Some members of the Catholic Media Practitioners Association of Nigeria (CAMPAN) with the officiating priest, Monsignor Benard Okodua and Monsignor Gabriel Osu after the mass in commemoration of the 2017 World Communications Day at the Holy Cross Cathedral, Onikan-Lagos on May 28.

Two years of dummy change: Nigeria’s patience gone awry

Commentary@ITRealms:

Like play, like play, the clock started tickling; seconds rolled into minutes, minutes into hours, hours into days, days into months and of course, months into years.

It is no longer news that President Muhammadu Buhari has clocked two years in office today, Monday, 29th May, 2017. Another opportunity to really assess him if he has brought the desired "change mantra" he promised Nigerians. A potpourri of reactions has trailed the President's leadership style.

The bane of Nigeria is that people who are unprepared for leadership positions are helped to occupy important positions in the executive arm of government. A politician who aspires to lead Nigeria should have a good grasp of Nigeria's history, the issues confronting us as a country. If elected, must have a blueprint of policies ready.

It is stale news that Nigerians are not happy with Buhari as per their expectations. Buhari, I need to tell you that Nigerians are no longer exercising patience.

A hungry man does not understand patience; he hankers deliberately to fill his belly with edibles. A hungry man daily expects between life and death. He may be praying to go to heaven, but he is not prepared to die at least of hunger. Counsel him to exercise patience and you become his number one enemy. We will not be fair by calling people names because they have told President Buhari to sit up. God has not configured man to be patient with pain and suffering. Those who are craving for visible change from President Buhari's administration want to see a reflection of change.

They want to be sure that government is on the same page with them. Human memories are short; and leaders all over the world are human beings who need to be reminded of their obligations to those they lead. If you don't remind them, they may never remember you.

Sai Baba, two years in office after your historic assumption, it has become increasingly tedious to see the change Nigerians voted for. The hitherto much vaunted body language of the President seems to have evaporated.

Currently, Nigeria is in a terrible state. The price of the majority of items has increased, electricity that would have provided a soothing relief is now a scarce commodity. The absurdity of asking the masses to bear the brunt of government inefficiency is the height of irresponsibility and unexpected of a government that raised the hopes and aspirations of Nigerians, but now sees nothing wrong in altering its electoral promises. It does not require rocket science to engender good governance. Nigerians are tired of lousy services, lethargic approaches to critical issues. There are no indications that the government is moving in the right direction and hope for a better tomorrow remains forlorn.

Sai Baba, do we need the circuitous route to get to the promised land? Buhari promised to nudge the nation on the path of rebirth and regeneration, but it has remained "story for the gods". Things are getting harder each passing day. I likened Nigeria to a brand new car, which embarked on a journey with a full tank but could not arrive at its destination because it had a shattered windscreen and faulty engine due to the inexperienced and careless driver.

Let me categorically say here that, I write this article without any malice. More importantly, I expect no personal gratification other than to see change in the lives of the people.

Buhari, when we told you to hit the ground running, Mr. Femi Adesina your special adviser said ‘NO’ that you might fall inside the mud.

Are you crawling or walking, no matter what, we cannot continue to move at this millipede level. The average Nigerian is very high in pessimism and very low in patriotism. Hardly an edifying fact for a country that wants to grow; Nigerians are encircled by grinding and excruciating poverty. There is disconnect between the people and the government. The economy is in tatters. Those who gave Buhari a benefit of doubt in his second coming are already gnashing their teeth now. Boko Haram is still hanging like the sword of Damocles on the heads of Nigerians, the Fulani herdsmen are maiming, raping with reckless abandon, kidnapping has refused to stop, armed robbery is a daily exercise, salaries are even owed and Nigerians are dying needlessly on a daily basis.

Buhari's leopard spot has not been able to change its spot. His methods and feelings are still the same. His mission is as serpentine as ever. He promised change and has no idea of what change stands for.

Those that campaigned for Sai Baba dressed him in deceptive drapes of inadequacy. The more they shout change, the more things remain the same or even worse. We don't need a fictional George Orwell to tell us that things are not moving well.

Like an ancient curse, the same old problems continue to haunt Nigerians. We have been sitting on a barber's chair, swiveling in all directions without change.

Lest I forget, Buhari and his party All Progressive Congress (APC) did not really have a plan, what they possessed was to come into office and think of any. The blame game is still all over the place. Nigerians are no longer at ease and things must not fall apart, because the arrow of God is not a purple hibiscus. The issues that confront Nigeria are as glaring as a bright shining star and the effects as scorching as the rays from the sun, but some pettifoggers employed by the APC choose to deliberate on inanities.

Take it or leave it, this is a dummy change.

*Chris Uruakpa is a public commentator and contributed this from Lagos.

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Danbatta, NCC boss, secures MTN N221m waiver in Kano

ITRealms:

The Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof Umar Garba Danbatta, has intervened in a case between MTN Nigeria and the Kano State government, resulting in a waiver of N221m, ITRealms reports.

Lately, Danbatta, ITRealms recalls had in Ogun State last year, intervened which resulted in unsealing of 47 base stations  under lock and key,  while the state governor, Mr Ibikunle Amosun,  also reduced ground rent fee owed by IHS Towers from N370 million to N120 million.

ITRealms gathered that some staff of Huawei, working on telecommunication infrastructure expansion in Kano state on behalf of the MTN Nigeria, were arrested by the officials of government’s agency, Kano State Urban Planning and Development Authority (KANUPDA), a development which put a full stop to the project.

In addition, ITRealms reports that the situation could have adverse effects on Quality of Service experience among millions of service subscribers in the state and beyond before it was swiftly nipped in the bud.

ITRealms further gathered that Danbatta’s unscheduled visit to the state governor, Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje led to the government generously waiving the permit fee of Two Hundred and Twenty One Million Naira (N221,000,000) for deployment of fibre infrastructure in that state.

Danbatta, was said to have convinced the governor about the economic advantages that the state stands to gain from deployment of more telecommunication infrastructure as well the potential quality of service concern that millions of service subscribers would face if the work was further delayed.

In a letter signed by its Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Arch Bashir Mudi Adamu, and addressed to MTN, the agency, however, said the waiver of permit fees was granted in respect of two federal roads, Zaria Road and Maiduguri Road in the state.

ITRealms reports that the intervention was a strategic collaboration and partnership with other relevant agencies and stakeholders form key component of the 8-point agenda of the NCC boss unveiled last year.

Chuks Egbune/GEE

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Online privacy: Kaspersky’s standalone VPN for Macs, PCs

ITRealms:

The South African-based Kaspersky Lab, has introduced Secure Connection into its Nigerian market for encryption of traffics on Windows and Mac computers, reports ITRealms.

Based on the Virtual Private Network (VPN) technology, ITRealms gathered that with Secure Connection Kaspersky Lab, automatically enables encryption when the risk of data interception is most dangerous for the user, for example, when connecting to public Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) or using online banking or other sites containing private information.

ITRealms reports that unprotected or poorly protected, transfer of data puts a person's privacy, data and even their money at risk.

“By using tools that are freely available on the Internet, intruders can read and use information transmitted over these connections, including messages, passwords and files,” the lab warned.

ITRealms equally reports that, according Head, Consumer Business at Kaspersky Lab, Andrei Mochola, that Secure Connection promises reliable encryption of transmitted data, and if the user forgets to enable it, the solution will display a reminder when it is most needed.

“For example, it will offer its services if a Wi-Fi network is unsafe or – in the case of the Windows version – if the user attempts to open a site with critical information (email, online banking, e-payment system, online store or social networking site) without encryption. If preferred, Secure Connection can also be set to manual control or continuous encryption,” he said.

Mochola, noted that management of Secure Connection is worth mentioning separately, adding that duration and volume of encrypted traffic transmitted for each connection is easy via a My Kaspersky personal account, and the same portal could be used to control remaining megabytes in the free version.

“User security is our priority, which is why we aim to provide multi-level protection at every stage where users are at risk of losing anything. Traffic encryption is an essential component of digital protection, and we are now happy to provide it to all owners of Windows and Mac computers, and by the end of the year – to all mobile users as well,” he said.

Nonye Dom/GEE

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Fear not, whilst communicating hope, trust in our time says Pope Francis

Commentary@ITRealms: 

Message of His Holiness Pope Francis at the occasion of the 51^st World Communications Day, 2017. Excerpts.

 

Fear not, for I am with you (Is 43:5):

Access to the media – thanks to technological progress – makes it possible for countless people to share news instantly and spread it widely. That news may be good or bad, true or false. The early Christians compared the human mind to a constantly grinding millstone; it is up to the miller to determine what it will grind: good wheat or worthless weeds. Our minds are always “grinding”, but it is up to us to choose what to feed them (cf. SAINT JOHN CASSIAN, Epistle to Leontius).

I wish to address this message to all those who, whether in their professional work or personal relationships, are like that mill, daily “grinding out” information with the aim of providing rich fare for those with whom they communicate. I would like to encourage everyone to engage in constructive forms of communication that reject prejudice towards others and foster a culture of encounter, helping all of us to view the world around us with realism and trust.

I am convinced that we have to break the vicious circle of anxiety and stem the spiral of fear resulting from a constant focus on “bad news” (wars, terrorism, scandals and all sorts of human failure). This has nothing to do with spreading misinformation that would ignore the tragedy of human suffering, nor is it about a naive optimism blind to the scandal of evil. Rather, I propose that all of us work at overcoming that feeling of growing discontent and resignation that can at times generate apathy, fear or the idea that evil has no limits. 

Moreover, in a communications industry which thinks that good news does not sell, and where the tragedy of human suffering and the mystery of evil easily turn into entertainment, there is always the temptation that our consciences can be dulled or slip into pessimism.

I would like, then, to contribute to the search for an open and creative style of communication that never seeks to glamourize evil but instead to concentrate on solutions and to inspire a positive and responsible approach on the part of its recipients. I ask everyone to offer the people of our time storylines that are at heart “good news”.

Good news:

Life is not simply a bare succession of events, but a history, a story waiting to be told through the choice of an interpretative lens that can select and gather the most relevant data. In and of itself, reality has no one clear meaning. Everything depends on the way we look at things, on the lens we use to view them. If we change that lens, reality itself appears different. So how can we begin to “read” reality through the right lens?

For us Christians, that lens can only be the good news, beginning with the Good News par excellence: “the Gospel of Jesus Christ, Son of God” (Mk 1:1). With these words, Saint Mark opens his Gospel not by relating “good news” about Jesus, but rather the good news that is Jesus himself. Indeed, reading the pages of his Gospel, we learn that its title corresponds to its content and, above all else, this content is the very person of Jesus.

This good news – Jesus himself – is not good because it has nothing to do with suffering, but rather because suffering itself becomes part of a bigger picture. It is seen as an integral part of Jesus’ love for the Father and for all mankind. In Christ, God has shown his solidarity with every human situation. He has told us that we are not alone, for we have a Father who is constantly mindful of his children. “Fear not, for I am with you” (Is 43:5): these are the comforting words of a God who is immersed in the history of his people. In his beloved Son, this divine promise – “I am with you” – embraces all our weakness, even to dying our death. 

In Christ, even darkness and death become a point of encounter with Light and Life. Hope is born, a hope accessible to everyone, at the very crossroads where life meets the bitterness of failure. That hope does not disappoint, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts (cf. Rom 5:5) and makes new life blossom, like a shoot that springs up from the fallen seed. Seen in this light, every new tragedy that occurs in the world’s history can also become a setting for good news, inasmuch as love can find a way to draw near and to raise up sympathetic hearts, resolute faces and hands ready to build anew.

Confidence in the seed of the Kingdom:

To introduce his disciples and the crowds to this Gospel mindset and to give them the right “lens” needed to see and embrace the love that dies and rises, Jesus uses parables. He frequently compares the Kingdom of God to a seed that releases its potential for life precisely when it falls to the earth and dies (cf. Mk 4:1-34). This use of images and metaphors to convey the quiet power of the Kingdom does not detract from its importance and urgency; rather, it is a merciful way of making space for the listener to freely accept and appropriate that power. It is also a most effective way to express the immense dignity of the Paschal mystery, leaving it to images, rather than concepts, to communicate the paradoxical beauty of new life in Christ. 

In that life, hardship and the cross do not obstruct, but bring about God’s salvation; weakness proves stronger than any human power; and failure can be the prelude to the fulfilment of all things in love. This is how hope in the Kingdom of God matures and deepens: it is “as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow” (Mk 4:26-27).

The Kingdom of God is already present in our midst, like a seed that is easily overlooked, yet silently takes root. Those to whom the Holy Spirit grants keen vision can see it blossoming. They do not let themselves be robbed of the joy of the Kingdom by the weeds that spring up all about.

The horizons of the Spirit:

Our hope based on the good news which is Jesus himself makes us lift up our eyes to contemplate the Lord in the liturgical celebration of the Ascension. Even though the Lord may now appear more distant, the horizons of hope expand all the more. In Christ, who brings our human nature to heaven, every man and woman can now freely “enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh” (Heb 10:19-20). By “the power of the Holy Spirit” we can be witnesses and “communicators” of a new and redeemed humanity “even to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:7‑8).

Confidence in the seed of God’s Kingdom and in the mystery of Easter should also shape the way we communicate. This confidence enables us to carry out our work – in all the different ways that communication takes place nowadays – with the conviction that it is possible to recognize and highlight the good news present in every story and in the face of each person.

Those who, in faith, entrust themselves to the guidance of the Holy Spirit come to realize how God is present and at work in every moment of our lives and history, patiently bringing to pass a history of salvation. Hope is the thread with which this sacred history is woven, and its weaver is none other than the Holy Spirit, the Comforter. Hope is the humblest of virtues, for it remains hidden in the recesses of life; yet it is like the yeast that leavens all the dough. We nurture it by reading ever anew the Gospel, “reprinted” in so many editions in the lives of the saints who became icons of God’s love in this world. 

Today too, the Spirit continues to sow in us a desire for the Kingdom, thanks to all those who, drawing inspiration from the Good News amid the dramatic events of our time, shine like beacons in the darkness of this world, shedding light along the way and opening ever new paths of confidence and hope.

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