NIGF2018 gets date @Yar’Adua centre Abuja

ITREALMS:

The Multi-stakeholders Advisory Group (MAG) of the Nigeria InternetGovernance Forum (NIGF) has announced the dates for its 2018 edition slated to take place at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Conference Center on July 3^rd, this year, reports ITRealms.

The two-day forum scheduled for July 2-3, ITRealms gathered has the theme as ‘‘Internet as Enabler for Good Governance’’ with the first day dedicated to the pre-NIGF Youths Workshop with the subtheme “Internet for Opportunities, Value Creation and Empowerment.”

The NIGF-MAG, ITRealms also gathered, comprised of Federal Ministry of Communications (MoC), National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), DigitalSENSE Africa Media,  Nigeria Internet Registration Association (NIRA), Internet Society Nigeria Chapter (ISOC),  Creative Technology Development International (CTDL), and Global Network for Cybersolution (GNC), among other the Internet community stakeholders.

ITRealms equally reports that the Honourable Minster of Communications, Barrister Abdur-Raheem Adebayo Shittu, would be the Special Guest of Honour, and he will declare the forum open.

The pre-NIGF Youths Workshop, ITRealms further gathered, would be chaired by the Executive Commissioner for Stakeholders at NCC, Mr. Sunday Dare.

The organisers, ITRealms reports, said NIGF 2018 is to facilitate stakeholders’ intervention on the use of Internet for the enthronement of good governance for national economic recovery; stimulate the Internet community open participation in a regional and global Internet policy dialogue on emerging Internet issues; and engage stakeholders toward effective monitoring of the implementation of National Economic & Growth Plan and Sustainable Development Goals.

Uboshe Uboshe/ED, Ops

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'FG'll not be distracted'

ITREALMS:

The Federal Government (FG) has said it will not be distracted by avalanche of allegations from any quarter, report ITRealms.

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, who disclosed this to ITRealms, said the Mohammadu Buhari's administration will not be distracted by frivolous allegations from any quarter, especially those cleverly choreographed to divert attention from a widely-acclaimed presidential proclamation and to shore up support for a waning and egotistical cause.

The Minister also said the administration is too busy trying to clear the mess of 16 years and build on its unprecedented achievements over the past three years to waste its energy and time on framing up anyone or dwelling on issues that are not grounded in fact.

He said while those who have skeletons in their wardrobes should be afraid, even of their own shadows, innocent persons need not worry about any investigation, whether real or imagined.

''This administration will never engage in a frame-up of innocent citizens. That is neither in the character of President Muhammadu Buhari nor in that of his administration. Only the guilty should be worried. To paraphrase an African proverb, a man who has no wife cannot lose an inlaw to the cold hands of death.

''The administration is also strongly committed to the tenets of democracy, including freedom of speech and the right to dissent. But we understand that those who, in their time, were untethered to those principles would find it hard to believe,'' Mohammed said.

Uboshe Uboshe/GEE

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Bayelsa seeks partnership with NOA

ITREALMS:

The Bayelsa State is seeking for partnership with the state office ‎of the National Orientation Agency (NOA) for an improve public service reforms, reports ITRealms.

Disclosing this, the Bayelsa State Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Daniel Iworiso-Markson during a visit to the state office ‎of the National Orientation Agency (NOA).

The Commissioner who was accompanied by members of the state media team was received on arrival by top officials of the‎ agency. 

He also said the visit was to seek the support of the NOA ‎in the forthcoming town hall meeting on the public service reforms in the state, stressing that the agency's collaboration will assist the govern‎ment in collation of feedback which will further help the reforms process and urged the NOA to spread its officials to all the venues of the town hall meeting in order to put together a comprehensive assessment report. 

He said the restoration administration ‎of Governor Henry Seriake Dickson is determined to clean the augean stable and make the state public service more productive and result oriented.

Iworiso-Markson who disclosed some of the shocking revelations from the various committees carrying out the verification of workers‎, said the government will unfold some of its findings during the town hall meeting. 

"I am very delighted to be here ‎today. This is the first time I will be visiting a federal agency since I became the Commissioner for Information and Orientation. As you can see, I didn't come alone. With me are members of the state media team.

"We have come here to solicit your partnership on the town hall meeting we are organizing. Beginning from next week, we will be going from one local government to the other, engaging our people on the reforms that we are carrying out in the public sector.

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Minister condoles NPAN, The Punch, Aboderin family over Wale’s demise

ITREALMS:

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has condoled with the family of the late Mr. Gbadebowale Aboderin and the management of the Punch Newspapers over the death of the media mogul, reports ITRealms.

A press statement issued by his Special Assistant on Media, Segun Adeyemi in Oro, Kwara State, last weekend, and made available to ITRealms, the Minister also extended his condolences to the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN) over the death of Mr. Aboderin.

He said although his death was untimely, Mr. Aboderin made his mark as an administrator, philanthropist, publisher as well as sports enthusiast and promoter, among others.

Alhaji Mohammed said Mr. Aboderin will particularly be remembered for taking The Punch, a foremost brand, to greater heights within a relatively short time, and for his contribution to the development of
sports in the country.

He described the death of Mr. Aboderin as a huge loss not only to his family and the media and sports industries but to the nation in general.

The Minister prayed for the repose of the soul of the deceased and urged his family to take solace in the fact that Mr. Aboderin lived a life of service to humanity.

Ayo Midele/ED, Ops

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Pix: Late Mr. Gbadebowale Aboderin

Lagos declare June 12 public holiday

ITREALMS:

The Lagos State Government on Saturday declared June 12, 2018 as public holiday to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the annulled 1993 Presidential elections adjudged to be have won by the late Moshood Kashimawo Olawale (MKO) Abiola, reports ITRealms.

The State Governor,  Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode in a statement signed by the Secretary to the State Government,  Mr. Tunji Bello, said the significance of June 12, 1993 elections, adjudged as the freest and fairest in the history of Nigeria, would always be a reference point in the State's quest to entrench true democracy in service to the people.

Commending President Buhari's recent declaration of June as the new Democracy Day, the Governor said the singular act would forever ensure that Chief MKO Abiola and other martyrs of democracy who laid down their lives in the struggle to entrench good governance did not do so vain.

"On behalf of all Lagosians, we want to commend and applaud Mr President, Muhammadu Buhari for deeming it fit finally against all odds from all other past presidents that 25 years after, we are able to now celebrate our own Democracy Day and also declare that the real winner of 1993 June 12 Presidential election was actually our own MKO Abiola.

"No matter how long you try to hide history, history will always reveal itself with a true platform. So, we know that is one very important singular step as we go forward to build an enduring democracy. And for all democrats in this country, we are excited that we are moving in the right direction.

"It also affirms that Nigeria can get it right if we begin to put things in the right perspective and work for the general good of the greater number of people. That is the true essence of democracy.

“For us in Lagos, June 12 is not just a day to remember, it is a rallying point for those of us in service that we must continuously strive to entrench true democracy and good governance which is what Chief MKO Abiola totally exemplified," Governor Ambode said.

Ayo Midele/GEE

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Data Science Nigeria unveils Artificial Intelligence hub @ UNILAG – ITREALMS

ITREALMS: 

A non-profit foundation, Data Science Nigeria (DSN) has unveiled the phase 1 of its Community Centre and Artificial Intelligence Hub for cross-industry and academic research, at the campus of the University of Lagos (UNILAG), reports ITREALMS.

According to the visioner of Data Science Nigeria, Mr. Bayo Adekanmbi, who is Chief Transformation Officer (CTO) of MTN, a hands-on data scientist and a doctoral researcher who uses data science algorithms to understand low-income customers, DSN is to accelerate applications of artificial intelligence to solve social and business problems through a strategic partnership.

ITREALMS gathered that DSN has organised free bootcamps, industry summits, online free courses and provide internship/direct job placements for the Nigerian data science community.

A press statement made available to ITREALMS indicated that the Hub launched on Friday, June 8 at the university campus with the Vice Chancellor, Professor Oluwatoyin Temitayo Ogundipe and Dr. Uyi Stewart, Director, Global Development Strategy, Data & Analytics, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Seattle, USA, in attendance.

DSN’s drive, ITREALMS gathered, has strategic partnership between the academic community, industry, and local and international technology hubs similar to the highly successful Stanford University-Silicon Valley model.

DSN is committed to supporting Nigerian students and encouraging them to turn their academic research into innovative start-ups or social enterprises aligned with millennial developmental goals. DSN has a particular interest in solving local problems in the fields of health, education, agriculture and financial inclusion.

In addition, the Hub will serve as the community centre for data science enthusiasts and experts to fraternize, learn, share ideas and participate in local and international projects. DSN also plans to use the Hub for face-to-face masterclasses, industry meet-ups, and dial-in conferences with its over 100+ mentors from across the globe. Data science practitioners can also participate in many industry data projects as interns, freelancers or experts at the Hub.

The Hub features modern data collection tools including biometric readers, an AWS AI DeepLens Camera, Google Clips, Intel Movidius Neural Stick, GPS tracking devices, Bionic Nature Observing Device, Internet-of-Things suite and many others.

The Hub’s unveiling ceremony will also include the announcement of its highly successful learning bootcamp/hackathon, titled, Deep Learning Nigeria, to be held October 10-15, 2018. This will be a fully residential, all-expense-paid learning camp focused on deepening financial inclusion through the use of machine/deep learning for credit risk scoring, identity image/voice authentication, ATM point-of-presence location optimization using geospatial data, and biometrics/voice analytics.

This will be complemented with a first-of-its-kind Inter-Campus Machine Learning Competition to recruit the best 75 students for a Data Science bootcamp, with opportunity to win N1 million through participation in Kaggle competitions and bootcamp quizzes.

DSN prides itself of building the largest network of data science mentors worldwide through its through its #MentorAfricanDataScientists programme, through which Nigerian students are mentored by international data scientists. In its eighteen months of operation, DSN has incubated four data science concepts which are being tested for real world applications.

DSN, further claimed its positioned to solve social/business problems and galvanize data science knowledge revolution, which could position Nigeria to become the outsourcing hub for international Data Science/Advanced Analytics/Big Data projects, with opportunity to access at least 1 per cent share of the global big data and analytics market, valued at $150b in 2017 ($203b in 2020).

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Seven lucky Glo subscribers to go to Russia

ITREALMS:

Seven lucky subscribers have emerged in the first draw in the ongoing promo of Nigeria’s foremost telecommunications operator, Globacom, tagged,GO Russia, reports ITRealms.

Globacom launched Go Russia a couple of weeks ago to reward some of its loyal subscribers by flying them to Russia for a good time.

The lucky winners that emerged in the first draw include Orewa Edwin Ehi, Aghaegbunem Marvel Chukwufumnaya Oladunjoye, Joseph Babatunde and Kome Sunny Ikpeba. Others are Agbede Temidayo Bayodele, Adeoye Adefisoye Simon and Olugbokiki Mukail Omolola.

22 lucky winners will emerge eventually from the promo and they will enjoy an all-expenses-paid trip to Russia.

Globacom in a statement said the promo runs from May 16 to July 8, 2018 and is open to all new and existing Prepaid/Postpaid customers on the Glo network nationwide.

The operator said the promo was designed to reward “our amazing subscribers who have stood solidly behind the brand over the years. Their patronage and support have been overwhelming, and this was why we launched the promo to appreciate them.”

To take part in the promo, a subscriber needs to use N3, 000 on Voice calls or a minimum of N5, 000 on Voice and Data to be entered for a draw. However, incremental usage of N500 over N3000 for Voice or N5, 000 for Voice and Data attracts an extra entry to the draw. The more the airtime used by subscribers, the higher the chances of winning.

Interested customers can participate in the promo by sending GO to 240 on the Glo network. Winners will be contacted by Glo customer care.

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NDSF 2018: Rudman, Amana commend DigitalSENSE on IG4D forebearer, drum support for IPv6 Roundtable

ITREALMS:

The duo of the chief executive officer, InternetExchange Point of Nigeria (IXPN) Mr. Muhammed Rudman and President, Nigeria Internet Group (NIG), Mr. Destiny Amana have commended the management of DigitalSENSE Africa Media, for the consistency in providing Internet stakeholders in Nigeria the platform to evolve and align with the global eco-system, describing them as ‘fore-bearers’ of news on IG4D, reports ITRealms.

Speaking at the 9^th edition of the Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on Internet Governance for Development (IG4D) and Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable, as part of the Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum (NDSF) series, at the Cooperative Hall, Oshodi-Isolo Secretariat, Oshodi-Lagos, Messrs Rudman and Amana applauded DigitalSENSE Africa Media, a certified At-Large Structure (ALS) at the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), for ensuring Nigerian Internet stakeholders are readily represented and kept abreast of issues on Internet Governance for Development (IG4D).

For NIG President, Amana, Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum (NDSF) series has been an expose for a lot of Nigerian Internet stakeholders, especially the students, youth and women as well as community-based organisation (CBO).

He urged corporate Nigeria in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to join hands with DigitalSENSE Africa Media alongside the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in bringing the benefits of the Internet and its related governance to Nigeria annually through the series.

Mr. Rudman, who doubled as the chairman of the 2018 Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum (NDSF) series, applauded the management of DigitalSENSE for their consistency in things that has to do with the Internet stakeholders in Nigeria.

“… Particularly in the organisation of the Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum on Internet Governance for Development (IG4D) and Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable whose sole purpose is for enlightening of the populace, especially the students, youth and women on topical issues relating to the importance of Internet and its governance as the Internet  eco-system evolves,” he said.

The evolution, he also said, has reached a peak for Internet Protocol version Six (IPv6) to take the centre stage, “hence DigitalSENSE efforts in using its Nigeria IPv6 Roundtable to galvanise stakeholders and industry experts did not come as a surprise to me, thus is worthy of  an applause and commendation.”

Rudman pointed out that for them at IXPN and lately the IPv6 Council Nigeria, whose CEO and chairman respectively he is, they hold these efforts of DigitalSENSE Africa Media in high esteem and will continue to give utmost support to them as far as IPv6 advocacy is concerned.

“This is to encourage them, to continue to promote, enlighten and act as fore-bearers of good news for such cause(s).

On the main theme of this year for the Nigeria DigitalSENSE Forum series: Internet Governance, Sustaining Development; it is very important that nowadays, we must relate our activities to the sustainability of the developmental activities in our areas, no matter how small. After all, there is need to keep this sector viable  with our various contributions so as to enrich whatever we have as laws governing Internet activities in the country alongside the evolving eco-system.

“Last month, May 25^th to be precise, we saw the beginning of General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in Europe. Hence, I was not surprised that DigitalSENSE team has session on this vis-à-vis with the Internet Protocol version Six (IPv6) in commemoration of the World IPv6 Day. This shows pro-activeness of the management and staff of DigitalSENSE Africa Media when it comes to issues bordering on Internet Governance for Development,” Rudman said.

Nenye Dom/GEE

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Emulate Airtel, Shittu tells corporate Nigeria

ITRealms:

The Honorable Minister of Communications, Barrister Adebayo Shittu, has urged corporate organizations and wealthy Nigerians to support humanitarian causes as this could help reduce the rate of poverty in the country, reports ITRealms. 

Speaking at the premiere of Airtel Touching Lives season 4 in Lagos, the Minister applauded Airtel’s commitment and consistency in reaching the downtrodden and empowering them.

He urged other corporate organizations to follow in the footsteps of the telco in extending a helping hand to those in need.

“I think that the companies doing business in Nigeria who have been benefiting from the enabling environment in Nigeria and the individuals and businessmen who have been benefiting must certainly come to the rescue and multiply what Airtel has been doing,” he said.

He stated that government needs the support of the private sector, NGOs, philanthropists and other well-meaning organizations to eradicate hunger and poverty.

The Minister also called on the National Assembly to inspire and encourage businesses in Nigeria to embark on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives.

“On the part of government, I think particularly, the National Assembly, which is saddled with making laws for us, should also feel challenged by what we have seen tonight by trying to initiate laws which would inspire or encourage Corporate Social Responsibility to be a major issue in the running of businesses of Nigeria”, he said.

“I am sure that Airtel might have spent fortunes to do what they have done, it is my prayer that Almighty God will continue to prosper the management of Airtel Nigeria and to help prosper Airtel itself. I want to challenge all of us tonight to make resolutions to touch lives in the same vein that Airtel has been doing” he added.

According to the Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director of Airtel Nigeria, Segun Ogunsanya, the telco will not relent in its effort to restore hope and helping the less privileged in the society in line with its vision of creating empowerment opportunities and making life better for Nigerians.

“I want to thank everyone in this room and to encourage you again; there is no limit to how kind any of us can be. My parting message is don’t spend your time asking why there are poor people in the world; it’s a waste of time.

“The right question is what can we do to change it? We are always going to have poor and unfortunate people amongst us. What next is what you can do to affect their circumstances and I am encouraging you to do something,” he said.

Since Airtel launched the Touching Lives initiative three years ago, it has achieved remarkable successes having restored hope of despaired individuals and families, saved many from the throes of death and empowered many underprivileged Nigerians.

The event was attended by several dignitaries including Senator Ajayi Borrofice, Chairman, Senate Committee on Science and Technology; Hon. Ujam Chukwuemeka, Deputy Chairman, House Committee on Communications; Representative of the First Lady of Lagos State, Mrs. Adeniji Kazeem; Senator Olabiyi Durojaiye, Chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission; Bimbo Ashiru, Ogun State Commissioner for Commerce and Industry; Leo Stan Ekeh, founder, Zinox and Oby Ezekwesili, Former Minister of Education & Renowned Public Intellectual, among several others.

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Exclusive: Telecom operators, NCC, tighten regulations on bulks, fraudulent SMS

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Telecommunications operators in the country have taken a key step in ensuring fraudulent Short Messaging Services (SMS) are curtailed, ITRealms can exclusively reports.

Investigations by ITRealms showed that telecommunications operators, under the aegis of Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) alongside the regulator of the industry, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) recently reached this conclusion.

According to our sources, the operators have suspended the delivery of messages with only phone number as its “Sender identity.”

Industry observers opined that with this, the unsolicited bulk messages by fraudulent persons will be reduced to the minimum as they may not want to use their identity.

In addition, this will aid the NCC’s rules on unsolicited calls and SMS, especially with its Do-Not-Disturb (DND) service and dedicated the short code “2442” to enable telecom consumers take an informed and independent decision on what messages they may wish to receive from network providers.

ITRealms recalls that Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) prides itself as the industry body for all telecommunications companies and those providing subsidiary services to telecommunications service providers in Nigeria.

NCC on the other hand, is the independent regulatory authority for the telecommunications industry in Nigeria, created under Decree number 75 by the Federal Military Government of Nigeria on 24 November 1992.

Chuks Egbune/GEE

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