E-Business
OBJ, Okere, Amuchinenwa Others Now IIM-Africa Fellows
Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, former president of Nigeria was joined by Austin Okere, founder and chief executive officer, Computer Warehouse Group (CWG), Rita Amuchienwa (Mrs), senior territory manager, (English) West Africa for Motorola Solutions and Ayo Adegboye, vice president, ITB (Schneider Electric, West Africa), last weekend, at an inducted into Fellows cadre of the Institute of Information Management (IIM-Africa).
Others ICT experts recognized on the category are, Engineer (Mrs) Florence Seriki, managing director and chief executive officer, Omatek Computers Limited, Olayinka Oni, national technology officer, Microsoft Nigeria, Kenneth Nwabueze, chief executive officer, Gist Me Communications, among others.
Other inductees are State Governors of Lagos, Ogun, osun, Kano, Akwa Ibom, Edo, NIMC DG, and Minister of Information and others drawn from the educational, records and document (information) management, finance, administration, engineering, construction, project management, IT and communications.
Speaking at the induction ceremony, Dr. Oyedokun Oyewole, president and chairman Governing Council of IIM-Africa, said that information is the force powering 21st democracy and economy.
He said that IIM-Africa was established in recognition that both private and public sectors will increasingly rely on information and knowledge and can create value through their ability to manage these value assets.
Oyedokun who bemoaned the traumatic state of the nation’s national memories like the National Archives, reminded the government that successful societies and economies in future will depend on how well they enable information be appropriately shared while maintaining essential protection for those on whose behalf the information is held.
He said: “They will depend on how well they learn from the information they hold, and how they use it to create new value, and on how well they deal with the new challenges that digital information presents, whether around security, sustainability or privacy.
“Effective management and sharing of information has the power to improve individuals’ lives and society as a whole, and even to drive economic growth which comes with significant responsibilities, not least to protect individuals’ data and privacy. The pace of change, and the challenges of the digital era, means we are not only seeing new opportunities but are also facing new risks.
“Strong leadership, governance and professionalism in records, information and knowledge management will be key, both to seizing opportunities, and to meeting the challenges ahead”.
He said that IIM is strategically positioned to help both public and private organizations in Africa develop the required frameworks, tools, and culture needed to build capacity.
According to him, by improving professionalism in the essential field, as required in the finance, administration, engineering, construction, project management, IT and communications, organizations will be ready to seize emerging opportunities, and meet the evolving challenges of managing information, especially in the emerging information age.
Speaking to Nigeria CommunicationsWeek on her induction into IIM-Africa’s fellowship, Rita Amuchienwa (Mrs), senior territory manager, (English) West Africa for Motorola Solutions, said, “I feel real good and excited. It is indeed a great achievement for me in my career path.
“As someone who has been active in the technology ecosystem, there are synergies between what IIM-Africa is expected to do and the potentials of technology usage. For instance, the Institute will help reshape Technology ecosystem in Nigeria and make it more professional. That is, the aspect of information management would have become a full disciple. Just like the President and Chairman of the Council rightly pointed out; there are over 200,000 distinct jobs in this field alone. That is an untapped area that IIM-Africa is moving into,” she said.
On the Institute’s rolled out vision, Amuchienwa said, “I would rate their vision as a very sound and renowned vision. This is a vision that we Nigerians expect for our Nation – a vision that will be beneficial and supportive to All!”
The Institute of Information Management (IIM-Africa) is a professional membership driven Institute, developed to serve the growing community of Data, Information, Records, Document and Archives Management professionals who are tasked with managing the dynamic information life cycle within the enterprise.
Apart from the Fellows others were inducted into Senior Professionals, Professionals and Associate membership.
Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) is in Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and needs urgent reforms to revive it, according to Isaac Kekemeke, board chairman of the service.
Kekemeke, who spoke at a workshop organised for NIPOST staff in Abuja yesterday, added that it is now time to go the whole hog to reform and make NIPOST fulfill its destiny to compare and compete favourably with multinational postal agencies.
“The approach may not be palatable at all times but we need to take the tough but necessary decisions to exit the intensive care unit. We are either out of ICU in good health or head for the morgue. NIPOST either functions effectively now as a commercialised state operator or gets privatised, so that myself, the PMG, and a good number of you risk the loss of our jobs,” the chairman said.
No doubt, he added, “Change is not always easy as many loathe change because of the uncertainty it brings but it is in my place to urge you all to embrace the change we advocate.”
The Internet Society’s six-month Fellowship Peering program continues to help make internet access affordable, dependable, and resilient. The program, according to the global charitable organisation, is targeted for fifteen professionals in the peering and interconnection sector.
“It offers a unique opportunity to build the skills, knowledge, and networks necessary to improve local Internet infrastructure and policy,” according to the site’s description.
The fellowship participants will participate in a comprehensive curriculum that includes virtual training sessions, collaborative forums, and technical and advocacy-based instruction on routing, Internet Exchange Points, and policy.
The fellowship culminates in attendance at a global peering event, which provides direct experience and networking opportunities with important voices in the Internet community.
The fellowship enhances participants’ impact in their particular nations by developing engagement with seasoned professionals and boosting regional and global collaboration. The program invites fellows to return to their communities prepared to expand interconnectivity, improve policy conditions, and make a meaningful contribution to the development of the Internet ecosystem.
Applicants must have at least three years of Internet experience and be based in Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, or Asia-Pacific.
Eligibility also required proper travel documentation and availability to attend important events such as African Peering and Interconnection Forum, Latin American and Caribbean Network Operators Forum, or Peering Asia, as well as a commitment of roughly four hours per week over six months.
Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has called for the withdrawal of the amendment of the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023 because it seeks to regulate the activities of bloggers operating within the territorial boundaries of Nigeria.
The organisation in its letter urged Mr Godswill Akpabio, Senate President, and Mr Tajudeen Abbas, Speaker of the House of Representatives, to “immediately withdraw the repressive bill.”
The titled A Bill for an Act to Amend the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023, to Mandate the Establishment of Physical Offices within the Territorial Boundaries of the Federal Republic of Nigeria by Social Media Platforms and for Related Matters among others intends to regulate bloggers, including by requiring all bloggers to register local offices and join recognised national association for bloggers.
Currently, the bill has passed its first and second reading in the Senate.
In the letter signed its deputy director, Mr Kolawole Oluwadare, SERAP asked Mr Akpabio and Mr Abbas “to ensure that any amendment to the Nigeria Data Protection Act promotes and protects the rights of bloggers and other journalists and does not undermine the fundamental human rights of Nigerians.”
It demanded an end to “the imposition of unnecessary restrictions on the rights of Nigerians online and Internet-based content.”
In the letter dated April 12, 2025, the group said, “This bill is a blatant attempt to bring back and fast-track the obnoxious and widely rejected social media bill by the back-door.”
“If passed, the bill would also be used to ban major social media platforms—including Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, WhatsApp, YouTube, TikTok, and independent bloggers if they ‘continuously fail to establish/register and maintain physical offices in Nigeria for a period of 30 days.
“Lawmakers should not become arbiters of truth in the public and political domain. Regulating the activities of bloggers and forcing them to associate would have a significant chilling effect on freedom of expression and lead to censorship or restraint.
“Should the National Assembly and its leadership fail to withdraw the bill to regulate the activities of bloggers, and should any such bill be assented to by President Bola Tinubu, SERAP would consider appropriate legal action to challenge the legality of any such law and ensure it is never implemented in the public interest,” the organisation warned.
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