A knowledge transfer and technology innovation hub, African Technology and Innovation Institutes (ATII) has awarded scholarships to ten pupils from Bridge International Academy, Lagos.

Through its Junior Scholars Program in partnership with Lumina Educational and Empowerment Foundation (Lumina), the scholarship will meet the educational needs of the benefitting pupils through their primary education, which is extendable to their university education.

The Junior Scholars Program is an offshoot of  ATII’s  Innovation, Leaders, Fellowship and Scholars Program that aims to empower and cater to the welfare of students aged 3-12 years from underprivileged and low-income communities by partnering with other organisations to provide scholarships for these rough diamonds.

In addition to the scholarship, ATII also provides STEM-based back-to-school kits and other Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) materials to spark their desire for education and to contribute to their communities in STEM-related fields.

In her congratulatory message, the Founder of ATII,  Prof. Rose-Margaret Ekeng-Itua represented by Mr Sunday Awolowo, ATII’s Programs Manager, praised the students for their “outstanding academic excellence” and their “resolve to continue to improve in their academic pursuits, especially in the STEM fields.”

“We hope that the scholarships will continue to encourage you to do great work to pursue STEM. We hope one day in the future you all will be inspired to be an Engineer, a technologist, a mathematician or scientist,” Prof. Ekeng-Itua said.

The ATII Junior Scholars Program is designed to encourage and support students who are interested in pursuing careers in these fields.

Mrs Ezinne Tochie-Asogwa, Manager of Academics at Bridge International Academy, expressed her appreciation to ATII for the generous gesture.

“On behalf of the management and staff of Bridge International Academy, we appreciate the kind gesture of ATII.

ATII is passionate about the next generation of leaders and individuals who will change the world, pursuing its mission to promote African and Indigenous Technologies, while supporting human capital development in alignment with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

The ATII scholarships will provide financial assistance to the students as they continue their education in STEM fields. The program will also provide mentorship and support from ATII professionals.

In light of recent developments aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s fintech sector, Ade Bajomo, President of FintechNGR, led a team from the Association’s Governing Council in an engagement with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to chart the way forward.

Receiving the team at the CBN headquarters in Abuja, Philip Ikeazor, Deputy Governor, Financial System Stability, commended FintechNGR’s active advocacy efforts that have significantly improved the fintech ecosystem.

The Central Bank emphasized the need for the Association to work closely with stakeholders to operate within regulatory provisions, facilitate compliance, and establish robust risk management frameworks and governance structures.

Mr. Ikeazor stated, “The Central Bank understands the critical roles of fintechs in driving financial inclusion to the last mile. Our efforts are geared towards helping fintechs become more attractive to investors and achieve greater success.”

During the meeting, Ade Bajomo noted that while stakeholders strive to comply with regulatory requirements, they sometimes face challenges beyond their control.

“The common understanding within our ecosystem is that compliance makes the environment safer for all to innovate, scale, and collaborate. FintechNGR will ensure the co-creation of a support structure with the CBN to enhance compliance.”

Some of the initiatives the regulators plan to pursue with the ecosystem include making the 2024 Nigeria Fintech Week more impactful, enriching the activities of the Regulators Forum, organizing fintech learning series for various stakeholders, and exploring self-regulation status for FintechNGR to foster closer relationships with regulators.

FintechNGR remains committed to working with all regulators to better position the ecosystem to be more inclusive and impactful.

Space Exploration and Research Agency (SERA), formerly called the Crypto Space Agency plans to launch a reality television series that will follow its efforts to send people from underrepresented nations to space aboard a Blue Origin suborbital vehicle.

The goal is to bring send people from Nigeria, India and a region known as the Small Island Developing States on a future Blue Origin flight.

Spaceflight candidates will first be chosen through a public voting system, then the finalists will participate in a docuseries about the last step in the selection process, the company states on its website.

The announcement expands upon a report released in June saying the New Shepard vehicle will bring the first Nigerian to space, as well as SERA’s own announcement in April saying the company had bought a six-seat Blue Origin flight for a yet-to-be disclosed date.

The Blue Origin flight is “marking a significant milestone for nations who have historically lacked access to space and paving the way for innovation and advancement within these regions,” SERA representatives wrote in a statement.

SERA did not announce when Blue Origin would fly the flight, but it noted that the selectees for India, Nigeria and the small islands would be open for voting to the public in the future, with details to come.

(The islands are a group of 39 states and 18 associate members of regional commissions of the United Nations, which are found in the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans along with the Caribbean and South China Sea.)

SERA, when it was still called Crypto Space Agency, sponsored Brazilian Victor Correa Hespanha aboard the NS-21 suborbital mission on Blue Origin in 2022.

The crypto company sold 5,555 non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to participants on April 25, 2022 and randomly selected Hespanha in a draw for the spaceflight, according to a past release.

Since quietly changing names in 2024 and announcing its Blue Origin flight in April, SERA has not disclosed in press releases how it is currently funded.

It’s possible that the upcoming Blue Origin endeavor involves a reality television arrangement, however, as SERA says it already has plans in place for the Phase 2 docuseries.

“Candidates will form into crews, with one representative from each seat, to compete in series of challenges that will be streamed over several episodes,” SERA representatives wrote.

There have been attempts already to use reality television as a way to spur interest in spaceflight. The now-defunct Mars One organization proposed using documentary profits a decade ago in an unsuccessful effort to bring humans on a one-way mission to the Red Planet.

Other reality show efforts concerning spaceflights have included “Space Hero” and “Who Wants To Be An Astronaut”, among many others.

That said, SERA has partnered with several organizations in other countries to make the future Blue Origin flight happen, along with Blue Origin itself, the most recent press release emphasized.

“For these seats, SERA has partnered with the National Space Research Development Agency (NASRDA) of Nigeria, and the Maldives Space Research Organization (MSRO). The remaining seat assignments for underrepresented countries will be revealed later this year,” officials stated in the release.

Credit: space.com