E-Business
IT Leaders’ Challenges: A Shortage Of Talent And A Need To Reinvent Cultures

By Keith Fenner, VP: Sage Enterprise Africa & Middle East
African CIOs must master the difficult balance between managing the risks of deploying immature technologies and those of being left behind by emerging, disruptive trends if they are to help their businesses drive profitable growth in the years to come.
That’s one of the key insights I took from Gartner Symposium/ITxpo in Cape Town, where many speakers focused on the state-of-play in the Internet of Things (IoT), the blockchain, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning.
These disruptive technologies will transform the way we do business over the next five to 10 years, yet they are not quite ready for prime-time deployment. African organisations have a few years to experiment with the tech in non-critical applications so that they are ready when the technologies burst into the mainstream.
IoT plus blockchain will enable a wide variety of new business opportunities in the future. Though they are evolving, they have a decade or more before they are truly mature.
A lack of standardisation, the business process changes it will demand, and the impact of large ledger sizes on network and computing resources are among the challenges for blockchain. IoT, meanwhile, raises concerns of the diversity of the hardware in use, power consumption, network performance and privacy.
It’S Time To Experiment (And Learn)
Those factors preclude massive investment and wide deployment for business-critical applications. This is a time to conduct many small proofs of concept to develop best practices and build the organisational capacity and infrastructure for tomorrow’s digital business models. Constant experimentation and innovation are essential if companies are to keep up with the rate of change.
We recommend doing 6-8-week experiments to start the digital transformation journey. Fail fast, fix, and move on. But organisations that start this journey will find themselves challenged by a shortage of digital talent, difficulties in scaling up small-scale experiments and a need to reinvent organisational cultures for constant innovation.
Where Is The Talent?
The shortage of skills in emerging technology areas was a key theme of the conference and of the conversations I had with many attendees. Organisations need strong in-house technical knowledge and skills in IoT and blockchain to manage vendor risk in these emerging areas. Companies need people able to evaluate the specialist offerings from niche vendors so that they can make good choices in a complex and constantly changing landscape.
One thing’s for sure: top quality IT talent has never been in more demand, so make sure your business is set up to attract and retain it.
Innovation As Part Of The Culture
Many large organisations are treating innovation and disruption as separate disciplines because of the challenges of driving change in an established business and securing the right skills.
Companies are pursuing a range of strategies to drive innovation in their businesses, ranging from setting up venture capital funds and incubators, investing in tech and digital companies, running innovation challenges and forming strategic alliances with tech companies.
However, it’s not enough for the techies to know about the technology, or to build innovation hubs within the business to play with disruptive new solutions. Blockchain and the IoT will one day affect everyone from risk and compliance to production to sales to finance. Every team needs to start to understand what these technologies mean for the company’s future, and adopt innovation as part of its mandate.
It can’t be stressed enough that innovation can’t happen in isolation — it must be part of the organisation’s culture. The IT team needs to develop new skills and change its culture to support the organisation as it integrates new technologies into the business. They will need vision and storytelling skills to help the organisation prepare for this change.
E-Business
CAC, NIBSS Unveil Platform for Data Access to Private Firms

Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) in partnership with the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) has unveiled a new Application Programming Interface (API) integration system to allow private firms access company data from the Commission’s database.
Hussaini Ishaq Magaji (SAN), registrar general of CAC, who spoke in Abuja at the unveiling said the system would give selected private organizations access to CAC services through technology-based companies, called “super agents.”
“This is a practical step to show that the Commission is committed to meeting the expectations of our customers,” he said.
Magaji explained that the integration allows the agents to retrieve data from the CAC database for use in specific client requests, outside the standard services provided by the Commission.
“Before now, only a few government agencies had this integration, especially those involved in investigations, anti-money laundering, and terrorism financing. Now, private companies that meet the criteria can also access it,” he said.
He said the system complies with the Nigerian Data Protection Act 2023, and information such as residential addresses, phone numbers, and dates of birth may be restricted.
“This is a call to law firms and companies with the right technology. We’ve started with NIPS because of their credibility. Embassies and banks can now authenticate company records directly through them.”
“There are prescribed fees. We already collect them on our portal, and now customers can also pay through these agents,” he explained.
He named NIPS, MoneyPoint, and OPE as some of the companies involved.
“OPE and MoneyPoint handle only registrations. But NIPS has moved further into validation and verification,” he said.
Ngover Ihyembe-Nwankwo, executive director at NIBSS, who represented Premier Oiwoh, managing director, said the service allows secure and efficient data verification.
“This is the result of years of effort to connect our systems with CAC. It will help users verify data within the limits of data protection laws,” she said.
She said the move is a way to lower costs and promote interoperability across the financial sector.
E-Business
FG Launches Online Citizenship, Business Management Platform

Ministry of Interior has announced the launch of a new Online Citizenship and Business Management Platform in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu.
A statement signed by Dr Magdalene Ajani, permanent secretary, Ministry of Interior’s said the initiative forms a key part of its ongoing reforms aimed at promoting transparency, enhancing operational efficiency, and significantly improving service delivery to the public.
The new digital platform is designed to streamline the application and processing of citizenship and business-related services, ensuring faster turnaround times and improved user experience.
The platform allows users to apply for and manage business permits, ensuring that both local and foreign businesses operate legally in Nigeria.
It includes an Expatriate Quota System to manage work permits for foreign employees, helping companies hire skilled workers while complying with Nigeria’s immigration laws.
The Citizenship Administration and Management System provides a streamlined online process for applying, tracking, and managing Nigerian citizenship applications and related services.
Members of the public, corporate entities, and other stakeholders are expected to access the platform through the ministry’s website: https://interior.gov.ng , Direct Portal Access: https://candb.interior.gov.ng , or contact candb-support@interior.gov.ng for support and inquiries.
“The Ministry of Interior remains committed to establishing a more efficient, transparent, and secure framework for citizenship administration, while continuously enhancing service delivery through digital transformation,” the statement read in part.
E-Business
NITDA, CISCO Empower Youth with Digital Skills

Fifty selected young unemployed Nigerians have completed a four-week intensive digital skills bootcamp under the Digital Literacy for All (DL4ALL) initiative, gaining practical training in Data Science, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and IT Essentials.
The programme, a collaborative effort between the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and Cisco, was hosted at NITDA’s South West Zonal Office in Victoria Island, Lagos.
Speaking on behalf of the Director General of NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa , the Head of the South West Zonal Office, Mrs. Chioma Okee-Agugwo, described the initiative as a vital component of Nigeria’s digital future. “This is not just a closing ceremony. It is the launchpad for new journeys—anchored in digital knowledge and powered by innovation,” she remarked.
According to the Director General, the initiative is rooted in NITDA’s Strategic Roadmap and Action Plan (SRAP 2.0) and reflects key focus areas including Digital Literacy, Emerging Technologies, and Youth Empowerment. It also aligns with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which seeks to accelerate economic diversification through digitisation, innovation, and skills development.
Inuwa noted that the DL4ALL initiative forms part of Nigeria’s broader commitment to digital inclusion—ensuring that no one is left behind in the evolving digital economy. It also supports the ambitious goal of achieving 70% digital literacy by 2027, championed by the Honourable Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani. This national vision aims to equip millions of Nigerians with the skills required to thrive in a tech-driven world.
He further emphasized the importance of empowering youth with globally relevant skills. “They are no longer just consumers of technology. They are creators, innovators, and future employers,” he said.
The NITDA boss explained that throughout the bootcamp, participants engaged in hands-on learning experiences designed to build both technical proficiency and digital leadership capabilities.
“This is only the beginning,” he stated. “Through our zonal strategy, we are bringing innovation closer to local communities. This is how we democratise access and unlock Nigeria’s full digital potential.”
Inuwa expressed appreciation to Cisco for delivering high-impact training and called on stakeholders to continue investing in partnerships, people, and platforms that drive digital inclusion.
He asserted that the newly certified participants are now equipped to contribute meaningfully to Nigeria’s digital economy—armed with the skills to build solutions, secure infrastructure, and launch tech ventures that solve real-world problems.
At the end of the bootcamp, participants demonstrated their knowledge through impressive presentations that showcased the integration of skills acquired across Data Science, AI, and IT Essentials. Many spoke passionately about how the programme had expanded their technical competence and sparked a drive to create job opportunities—not only for themselves but also for others—as entrepreneurs and digital solution providers in their communities.
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