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General News

Local Content Plan will Boost Domestic OEMs – Onawola

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Bolarinwa Onawola, is chief operating officer, Brian Integrated Systems Limited,
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Bolarinwa Onawola, is chief operating officer, Brian Integrated Systems Limited, a 100% owned Nigerian company with a factory for the assemblage of high quality and reliable its branded desktops, laptops, netbooks and classmate computers.
It recently launched a Windows Tablet in partnership with Intel & Microsoft.
Onawola spoke to peter ugwu on Brian’s plan for mobile devices market, among other industry issues. 

OEMs in Nigeria
The main thing is that Nigerians are still after foreign brands, not minding that there are competitive brands developed locally by Nigerians.
That has been an undoing to the original equipment manufacturers. We should consider the fact that before those brands enter our markets; they usually look at their own market.
But we are not deterred by that. We are rolling out and it is our believe that the local content drive of the Ministry of Communication Technology, the policies, programmes and deliberate actions been taken will help push locally made IT equipment into the market.

OEMs and Low Standard Products
Nigerians should know that gone are the days any company would want to gamble with its fortunes. Recently, I was in a conference organized by the Standard Organization of Nigeria (SON), we were discussing issues relating to standards and how the gap can be bridged.
With what SON said, I think they are working towards ridding the market of fake standards. As a company you wouldn’t want to be caught napping; meeting the standard is a must, if you want to sustain your business in the contemporary business world.
SON was at our lab few days ago, to assess our products and processes and we got top rating for it. No doubt, there are still some sub-standard good in Nigeria, but the level such good penetration in the market is being checkmate.

Local Manufacturing
Presently, we assemble computer products. However, we are working towards building a world class factory in a short period, where we can manufacture the computer components in Nigeria.
 It will take the market by surprise; although there are others who could boost of that already, but we are looking at a plant that will drive employment generation in the country, and add value to the country’s economy too.
There are challenges why companies actually delay in setting up plants in the country. The issue of power is still there, multiple taxations, but what we are thinking is that partnership is a good idea for businesses to grow, however, for the countries that produce these products, how did they get started.
They started from somewhere; basically from research and development. We need to put more resources and drives towards research and development.
A wealthy country is not the one that consumes, rather the one that produces. In the case of Brian, that is what we intend to achieve. We want to produce locally, for us and others. Our drive is to start in Nigeria and take such Nigerian brand to other parts of Africa. For us to do that, we need to invest heavily in research. We have mentors we need to follow for guidance.

R&D in Nigeria
Let me start by reminding us that oil and gas market is pass through a phase that it might not rise to compete with IT on the global market.
How do I mean, IT now provides the currency for any nation to measure in the global competitive market. To diversify our economy means infusing IT into the facets of the economy. Unfortunately, we are not doing enough as regards R&D.
We are not there yet. Until we realize that no country succeeds consuming, we will not get there. It might be capital intensive, but we need to put in the capital now. Today is the right time to invest on developing the R &D for the sake of the future generation.

Software Industry
India today has not drip of oil, but the Software market is worth over $70 billion per annum. We need to wake up to the fact that the IT industry is a big industry. I see it as becoming bigger than the oil and gas, both in the global and local scenes.
While oil is dwindling, IT is just increasing. Of course, in the early 20th Century, you didn’t get to hear about students in the Universities studying building applications, but now they do. It is a step in the right direction, but all we need to do is that, not just the government, rather collective measures to encourage the youths.
We need specialized courses tailored into developing apps. Recently, I was in a commercial bus and besides me was a lady. Before she boarded, as the bus was approaching the bus stop she was penning something down. When she joined us, she continued. That got me thinking; I was able to understand that she was putting pen on paper regarding an application the team was working on; the processes to develop the apps. That tells you the resilience of an average Nigerian youth.
People are beginning to tap into that area of ICT sector. All we need to do as a nation is to encourage them. We have the human resources to achieve whatever we want to achieve in the sector.
We need to start experimenting theories we have heard all these years. It is unacceptable that a Computer Science graduate he might not know the rudiments of Computer Science. I think our school curriculum should be reviewed to the school curriculum to catch the youths at their prime age and tailor their minds to the happenings in the ecosystem.

Why Brian Tablet?
We wanted a device that is portable and everybody can recognize and go along with; a device that will give user comfort even while in office, because it suites their work.
Through that, it makes increases the productivity level of the users. It also enables people to play due to the fact it has a combination of work and pleasure. These happen even on the go.

Differentiating Brian Tab from Others
Apart from the fact that it supports users to be productive, there are salient features in it. The RAM is 2GB, the memory size is 32GB and expandable to 64GBs.
It comes with Bluetooth, keyboard, that makes the operating very easy. You might want to detach it or use it together with the magnetic keyboard and it stands.
With the HDMI, you do not need to move about with your projector. The tab is built that you can have a seamless presentation with it. All you need to do is connect the HDMI cord to an enabled HDMI television or device and it comes live.
Another salient feature we considered will building the tablet, we thought people will have the need to print any document developed or downloaded into the device, without necessarily transferring it to anywhere such as flash drive.
We were able to achieve that, you can be able to print from any printer through the device. We made provision for a port and the connecting cable; anything that has USB port will work perfectly with it.

Market Penetration Drives
Since Nigeria is our home, for now, we need to start from here. But I can tell you that we are looking beyond the shores of the country.
We are studying the African markets and will penetrate those markets as the needs rise. By then, we have seen the good news and how it works.
At the moment, we are not relenting in making sure it becomes a well known brand and device. And I can confirm to you that there is no part of the country we are not gaining ground. We are moving from both in the corporate, industry; penetrating educational institutions too.

Partnership with Intel & Microsoft
What we wanted is a sector that is IT driven. We are moving into schools to register our strong presence, because the educational institutions are working towards IT compatibility.
To achieve that, we need giants in the industry to work with. Intel and Microsoft are global brands that are relevant to what we are doing based on their operational principles.
So, we do not want the teachers be left out, because this is a generation where students are getting smarter due to the obvious reasons of availability of smart devices that are internet enabled.

E-Learning Pack
That is one of the peculiarities we are pursuing, e-learning. We have a locally tailored application called C-fox that can be used by teachers and students alike. It has recommended courses which makes it easier for users to teach or learn. 

Brian Initiatives in The Market
We started from the desktops to laptops and then now to Windows tablet. The name Brian is a known brand, because we started from the days of old with our branded laptops, desktops and we are following the dynamics of the market.
Now, everybody is going micro; they want something small they can go along with, not necessarily to large that they need to drop it somewhere to operate. That has impacted our current line of products. And we are looking at the peculiarities of this environment. For instance, the Windows Tablet, the battery life is eight hours.
Power is still an issue in our environment, and here is a device that you can be able to use when you want to use it. So, we have positioned the battery lifespan to last longer; you can work, go on break, and resume, with the device being there for you.

 


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General News

EFCC Says Corrupt Politicians are Using Crypto Wallets to Launder Money

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Ola Olukoyede, chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has raised the alarm that some corrupt Nigerian politicians are now hiding their illicit wealth in cryptocurrencies to evade scrutiny and detection by anti-graft agencies.

EFCC Says Corrupt Politicians are Using Crypto Wallets to Launder Money

Ola Olukoyede, chairman, EFCC

The EFCC boss said the agency had uncovered a growing trend where fraudulent public officials now used cryptocurrency wallets to stash stolen public funds and conduct illicit transactions.

Olukoyede made the revelation at  an event commemorating Africa Anti-Corruption Day.

The event was held simultaneously in Abuja, Lagos and Ibadan, Oyo State.

Other speakers at the event lamented that Nigerians usually fell victim to crypto fraud, including the recent CBEX scam, where Nigerians lost over N1.3tn.

Olukoyede said, “Virtual asset fraud is on the rise. Our findings show that fraudulent politicians are already perfecting schemes and hiding their loot in cryptocurrencies to beat the investigative blackness of anti-corruption agencies.

“Stolen funds and unexplained wealth are being warehoused in wallets and payment for services are being done through this window,” he said.

Olukoyede warned that while the rise of virtual assets had transformed financial transactions globally, it had also created new avenues for money laundering and financial crimes.

He said, “Technology is moving at a supersonic speed around the world.

“The advent of virtual assets is a response to one of the qualities of money as a store of value like it is known in our elementary economies.”

“However, as with every progressive innovation, fraud starts to usually evolve, evolve ways of perverting their genuine purposes,” he said.

He added that the EFCC was not helpless in the face of the sophisticated schemes, noting that proactive training and intelligence sharing had enabled the commission to identify and investigate such cases.


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Airtel Nigeria Drives BFSI and Utility Sector Innovation with Industry-wide Workshop

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L-r: Oladeji Ilesanmi, Head, Enterprise Sales, Airtel Africa; Abhishek Biswal, Chief Business Officer, Digital Services, Airtel India; Dinesh Balsingh, Chief Executive Officer/Managing Director, Airtel Nigeria; Ogo Ofomata, Airtel Business Director, Airtel Nigeria; and Luc Serviant, Enterprise Business Director, Airtel Africa, during the first day of the two-day workshop, themed “Powering Financial Services with Connectivity”, hosted by Airtel Business for the benefit of the Banking, Financial Services & Insurance (BFSI) sector in Lagos this week.
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Airtel Nigeria, telecommunications and digital solutions provider, has reemphasised its commitment to national development with a two-day workshop for companies in Nigeria’s Banking, Financial Services & Insurance (BFSI) and utility sectors.

Held from July 8 to 9, 2025 at the Lagos Continental, the exclusive event brought together C-suite executives and industry thought leaders to co-create transformative and tech-driven solutions for these critical industries.

Themed “Banking on Innovation: Powering Financial Services with Connectivity” on 1 and “Accelerating Nigeria’s Digital Leap: Smarter Networks, Smarter Business” on Day 2, the sessions were designed to identify critical pain points, unlock business potential, and drive smarter, more connected operations across two of the nation’s most essential sectors.

Delivering the keynote address, Dinesh Balsingh, Managing Director/CEO of Airtel Nigeria, reaffirmed Airtel’s dedication to enabling and driving Nigeria’s digital transformation across the finance and energy sectors.

Speaking on the timeliness of the workshop, Airtel Nigeria’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Dinesh Balsingh said, “From power and water to finance, transportation, and logistics, this is a defining moment for every sector. The real question isn’t whether to adopt digital solutions, but how quickly and intelligently we can do so. At Airtel Nigeria, we’re moving beyond basic connectivity and becoming a true digital partner to the industries we serve.”

He highlighted Airtel’s categories of enterprise solutions that has been created to improve quality of life. These groupings include Internet of Things (IoT) for such services as smart metering, leak detection, energy optimisation, and real-time asset tracking; Communications Platform as a Service (CPaaS), which enables secure, multi-channel customer engagement via SMS, WhatsApp, Voice, and USSD; as well asl Network as a Service (NaaS), which delivers flexible, secure connectivity with cloud-ready agility.

Mr. Balsingh added that, “Nigeria’s power and energy industries are under growing pressure to modernise. Legacy infrastructure, fragmented systems, and lack of real-time visibility are major obstacles. Airtel is stepping in with the right tools, not just to connect, but to transform. With IoT, CPaaS, and NaaS, we’re laying the groundwork for smarter operations, improved service delivery, and better outcomes for businesses and consumers alike.”

Abhishek Biswal, Chief Business Officer, Digital Services at Airtel India, brought substantial insight to the discourse with a demonstration of Airtel’s IoT Hub and its transformative impact on energy distribution.

Biswal said, “The future of finance and energy is digital, and that future must be secure, scalable, and seamless. When financial players and utility providers partner with telcos like Airtel, we’re not just connecting systems; we’re building a smarter digital ecosystem for everyone.”

Reinforcing the CEO’s position, Ogo Ofomata, Director, Airtel Business, called for collaboration among the participating sector and their stakeholders.

“We don’t take lightly the trust you have put in us. Airtel operates in what we call the enabler industry. Sometimes we don’t even know there’s a problem until we come together like this. This workshop is about understanding your needs and working side by side to design solutions that truly fit,” she said.

In his remarks, Luc Serviant, Group Enterprise Business Director at Airtel Africa, highlighted the company’s role in driving digital transformation through sustained investments in 5G and LEO satellite connectivity, aimed at boosting remote operations and expanding access in underserved regions across the finance and energy sectors.

He said, “At Airtel, we understand that the future of is going digital, and reliable connectivity is the backbone of that future. From 5G to LEO satellite integration, we are investing in intelligent infrastructure that empowers service providers to operate more efficiently, respond in real-time, and deliver uninterrupted services to millions of Nigerians. This isn’t just about innovation; it’s about building the digital foundation that will power the nation’s next chapter.”

This workshop, which continues the series of sectoral engagements within Nigeria’s growing economy, concluded with feedback from stakeholders who called for the inclusion of regulatory bodies such as the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in future editions.

 


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AfCFTA Credit Fund Makes First Investment With $10m Loan

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The Credit Fund of the AfCFTA Adjustment Fund has successfully closed its first investment, committing $10 million to Telecel Global Services Ltd, through a senior secured amortising loan.

The transaction marks a significant milestone in the operationalisation of the Fund. The Credit Fund is one of three Funds under the AfCFTA Adjustment Fund, established by the AfCFTA Secretariat and African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) to provide targeted transitional support to AfCFTA State Parties and private sector entities as they adjust to the requirements and opportunities presented by the AfCFTA Agreement.

Telecel Global Services, a subsidiary of the Mauritius based Telecel Group, provides wholesale voice and SMS services and enterprise connectivity solutions to more than 250 telecoms operators across Africa and globally.

With digital connectivity being at the heart of the trade and economic integration and success of the AfCFTA, this facility will support Telecel’s expansion in Ghana and Liberia, strengthen its infrastructure, and contribute to bridging Africa’s digital divide through enhanced connectivity and digital inclusion.

By investing in digital infrastructure in underserved markets, the Fund is helping reduce trade barriers, foster cross-boarder productivity and accelerate inclusive industrialization. Mr. Jean-Louis Ekra, Chairman of the Board of the AfCFTA Adjustment Fund Corporation, stated: “

The closing of our first deal marks a historic milestone for the Credit Fund and the broader vision of the AfCFTA.

This US$10 million investment in Telecel Global Services is a clear demonstration of how targeted capital can drive meaningful impact—accelerating digital connectivity, enabling intraAfrican trade, and supporting private sector-led development in priority sectors.

It is our commitment to ensure that such investments continue to bridge critical gaps, stimulate economic resilience, and unlock Africa’s vast potential.”

H.E. Wamkele Mene, Secretary-General of the AfCFTA Secretariat, noted: “This transaction demonstrates how the AfCFTA Adjustment Fund is beginning to serve its intended purpose – supporting State Parties and the private sector as we work to make this Agreement commercially meaningful.

By investing in digital infrastructure, we are addressing some of the most critical enablers of trade facilitation, industrialisation, and regional value chain development.”

Prof. Benedict Oramah, President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Afreximbank, added: “Today, we make another bold statement of our unwavering intent to ensure that Africans reap the benefits of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement.

We are proud to have commenced the operationalisation of the Credit Fund. With this Fund, we will provide vital support to African corporates, helping them retool and expand their operations necessary to capitalise on the AfCFTA opportunities.

The investment strengthens a critical enabler, the digital economy and regional connectivity, while reinforcing our long-term commitment to transforming the structure of the African economy.”

Marlene Ngoyi, CEO, FEDA, the Fund Manager of the AfCFTA Adjustment Fund, said: “This investment exemplifies the strategic intent of the Credit Fund – to catalyse growth and resilience in sectors that are vital for Africa’s structural transformation.

We are proud to partner with Telecel, whose operations directly advance intra-African connectivity and digital trade.”

The Credit Fund will continue to prioritise commercially viable investments that enable trade, support diversification, and promote inclusive growth in line with the broader AfCFTA implementation agenda.


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