E-Business
Expert Asks FG to Develop National ICT Framework
Mr Jide Awe, an Information and Communications Technology (ICT) expert, has called on Federal Government to develop national framework to grow smart ICT systems and data economy in 2019.
Awe made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on Wednesday.
According to him, another area of interest that stakeholders are on the lookout for in 2019 is in the area of policy implementation, which will move the industry forward.
He said: “2018 was a mixed bag for the ICT sector, as the digital economy was definitely on the rise.
“ICT is hugely important and contributed more than what it ever recorded as most sectors experienced greater digital adoption and application.
“Domestic and foreign investments are being attracted according to the Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC) figures.
“Some other high points in 2018 are the setting up of innovation hubs by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and agency’s implementation of Government’s Executive Orders which prioritises indigenously developed IT content in procurement by MDAs.
“Nigerians are increasingly adopting digital channels to shop, to educate, do business and attend to personal matters.
“There has also been greater cloud adoption by businesses and individuals to improve performance.
“Young people continue to inspire as they win awards on the global stage.
“In 2018, a young Nigerian also developed a programming language that allows programmers to code in Yoruba.
“Significantly, NITDA announced that tech startups contributed 101 million dollars to the Nigerian economy in 2018.
“These and many more are how the ICT industry has fared in 2018, but with the development of the National ICT framework and implementation of the e-government inter-operability framework, 2019 will be more productive,” he said.
Awe said that in spite of new initiatives in 2018, the sector witnessed bad spots such as quality of service which was still a big issue in the telecommunications industry.
He said that though broadband penetration had improved, multiple taxations and other serious challenges were militating against the progress of broadband penetration efforts, affecting the seven licenced infrastructure companies (infracos) in particular.
Awe said that large segments of the populace such as women, the elderly, individual living with disabilities, people outside the formal sector, the poor and the rural populace were still digitally excluded.
He added that the level of national cyber security coordination was also low and public awareness of cyber threats was quite poor as well.
Awe said that in 2019, industry players were hopeful that policies of government, advances and development of technology would help unfold shifts that would affect their operations and performances, especially in terms of opportunities and challenges.
“Emerging issues and technologies will be of particular interest.
“Industry players that wish to stay ahead will always be interested in exploring the use and development of new technology to create disruptive and innovative business solutions.
“I expect new forms of digital collaboration that will continue to grow, leading to an increase in meetings, trainings, conferences and team work engagements in virtual pace.
“Also, with the right enabling environment, there should be more collaboration between industry, the academia and government,” he said.
Gartner predicts that by 2028, 75 percent of enterprise software engineers will use Artificial Intelligence (AI) code assistants, up from less than 10 percent, currently.
According to a Gartner poll of 598 global respondents conducted in the third quarter of 2023, 63 percent of organisations are now testing, deploying, or have previously implemented AI code assistants.
AI code assistants provide for more capabilities than only code development and completion, notes the research firm.
According to Gartner, the use of AI code assistants can lead to higher work satisfaction and retention, resulting in lower turnover costs.
Philip Walsh, senior principal analyst at Gartner, comments: “Software engineering leaders must determine ROI and build a business case as they scale their rollouts of AI code assistants.
“However, traditional ROI frameworks steer engineering leaders toward metrics centred on cost reduction. This narrow perspective fails to capture the full value of AI code assistants.”
Gartner notes that software engineering leaders must “reframe the ROI conversation from cost reduction to value generations”.
Walsh adds: “Calculating time savings on code generation is a good place to begin building a more robust value story. To convey the full enterprise value story for AI code assistants, software engineering leaders should connect value enablers to impacts, and then analyse the overall return to the organisation.”
National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has said that the planned national ID card will be issued to applicants by their banks.
NIMC said it is working with the Nigerian Interbank Settlement System (NIBSS) to deliver the cards to applicants.
“The card will be issued through the applicants’ respective banks in line with existing protocols with the issuance of the Debit/Credit cards,” the agency said at the weekend update on its official X handle.
KEY FACTS ABOUT THE PROPOSED NEW GENERAL MULTIPURPOSE NATIONAL IDENTITY CARD
- The new National ID Card is a single, convenient, and General multipurpose card (GMPC) , eliminating the need for multiple cards—not three.
- The single GMPC has multiple use cases:…
— NIMC (@nimc_ng) April 12, 2024
It said applicants need to request their cards with their NIN “through the self-service online portal, NIMC offices, or their respective banks”.
“The card will be powered by the AFRIGO card scheme, an indigenous scheme powered by NIBSS,” NIMC said.
“The card can be picked up by holders at the designated center or delivered to the applicants at the requested location at an extra cost to be borne by the applicants,” the update read.
National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has said that the new national Identity card, powered by AfriGo Card, is a single card with multiple services.
NIMC made the clarification against the confusion and criticisms that have trailed the AfriGo Card , touted as a National Domestic Card Scheme.
NIMC is launching the AfriGo Card, in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigeria Inter-bank Settlement System (NIBSS), and has had appointed SecureID, a Lagos headquartered company to manufacture the Card Scheme
Making clarification on the card, Kayode Adegoke, head of Corporate Communications of the NIMC, said the General multipurpose card (GMPC) will eliminate the need for multiple cards.
“The new National ID Card is a single, convenient, and General multi-purpose card (GMPC), eliminating the need for multiple cards—not three.
“The single GMPC has multiple use cases: Payments/Financial, Government intervention/services, travel, etc.
“The National Identity Management Commission is working with the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Nigerian Interbank Settlement System to deliver the payment and financial use cases.
“The card will be powered by the AFRIGO card scheme, an indigenous scheme powered by NIBSS. Applicants for the card will have to request with their NIN through the self-service online portal, NIMC offices, or their respective banks.
“The card will be issued through the applicants’ respective banks, in line with existing protocols with the issuance of the Debit/Credit cards.
“The card can be picked up by holders at the designated centre or delivered to the applicants at the requested location at an extra cost to be borne by the applicants,” he said.
Bankers, Officials Colluding to Re-loot Recovered Abacha’s Fund- EFCC
ClaimBuddy Bags $5m to Streamline Insurance Claims for Hospitals, Patients
Recapitalisation: UBA Seeks Shareholders’ Nod to Raise Capital
FemyWalsh Set to Launch FM Radio in Lagos
Wema Bank Launches Anti-Fraud Campaign to Protect Customers
Moniepoint Emerges Lead Sponsor of Payments Forum Nigeria – PAFON 1.0
See Full List of Fake Loan Apps Blacklisted By CBN
FIRS Files Tax Evasion Charges against Binance
AXA Mansard Empowers Female SMEs with Financial, Digital Skills
IFC Invests in New 4DX Ventures Fund to Support Tech Startups in Africa
News1 day agoNAFDAC Alerts Nigerians to EU Ban on Dex Soap
News1 day agoEFCC Discovers Fraudulent COVID Funds, World Bank Loan in Poverty Ministry
News1 day agoHistory as Nigeria Launches Mew 5-in-1 Meningitis Vaccine
E-Business1 day agoNew National ID Card to Be Issued Via Banks- NIMC
E-Financial1 day agoExtradition Efforts Underway as Arjarwalla, Fugitive Binance Executive Located in Kenya
E-Financial12 hours agoMasterCard, Onafriq Partner to Bring New Payments Suite to Africa
E-Financial12 hours agoEdun Hails SecureID Over Digitization Efforts
News9 hours agoBankers, Officials Colluding to Re-loot Recovered Abacha’s Fund- EFCC