Telecom
Meta Announces Llama Impact Innovation Awards to Support AI-Driven Organisations in Africa
Meta on Wednesday announced the launch of the Meta Llama (Large Language Model Meta AI) Impact Innovation Awards, building on its commitment to open science and empowering developers in every industry to drive breakthroughs, create new products and solutions, and benefit from accelerations in technological advancement and economic growth.
The Meta Llama Impact Innovation Awards supports organisations across Africa, the Middle East, and Turkey that are leveraging Llama 2 or Llama 3 to drive social impact. With awards of up to $35,000 USD, this program will identify and empower organisations that use Llama as a core element of their work to address challenges in the region.
The Awards is a global program and it’s open to all countries in Africa, the Middle East, and Turkey. Applicants are encouraged to demonstrate how their use of Llama 2 or Llama 3 addresses specific issues relevant to their primary location of operation:
Education: Leverage Llama to improve learning outcomes, increase access to quality education, and enhance the teaching experience. Applications might include AI-powered tutoring, personalized learning platforms, and intelligent tools for teachers.
Public services: Harness Llama to enhance transparency, accountability, and efficiency in government services. Applications might include but are not limited to solutions for citizen engagement, AI-driven data analysis, and virtual assistants for navigating government processes.
Healthcare: Apply Llama to improve health outcomes, streamline clinical workflows, and enhance patient experiences. These might include AI-powered diagnostic tools, intelligent tools for healthcare workers, or personalized medicine platforms.
Safety and Security: Employ Llama to develop innovative solutions that enhance public safety, prevent fraud, and protect vulnerable populations. For example, AI-powered fraud detection, chatbots for emergency response, and predictive analytics for crime prevention.
Application Details
The application window for the Meta Llama Impact Innovation Awards is open from Monday, June 17, 2024, to Friday, July 26, 2024. Organisations in eligible countries are encouraged to submit their applications. All proposals will be evaluated using a selection criterion that assesses:
Demonstrated utility of Llama: Llama should be a fundamental component of the project or product, and its utility should be clearly defined. As a part of this evaluation, applicants are required to submit public reference to their use of Llama (e.g., blog post, news article, or Github repository outlining how Llama is used for the project or product).
Applicability: The proposed solution measurably addresses the challenge outlined in their designated track.
Impact: The proposed solution articulates a vision for how their solution impacts the broader problem space and provides social benefit. This might include how the solution works across geographies, addresses the needs of additional communities, or similar.
Responsibility: Ideal winners will be able to demonstrate how they utilized the Responsible Use Guidelines in the development of their project or product.
Winners will be notified by September 2024 while applicants-of-interest and runners- up may be notified by or beyond September 2024. If your organisation has a submission for how to use Llama to address the relevant issue topic, Meta invites you to send in your applications before the application window closes and expect more program updates.
MTN Nigeria Communications PLC has announced that the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has approved the renewal of the spectrum lease agreement between MTN Nigeria and Natcom Development and Investment Limited (NTEL).
Uto Ukpanah, Company Secretary in a statement released recently said that the agreement covers the lease of NTEL’s 5MHz frequency division duplex (FDD) in the 900MHz spectrum band and 10MHz FDD in the 1800MHz spectrum band, which spans 19 states.
The renewal is for another two-year period, effective 1 May 2025. Additionally, the NCC has approved a one-year lease expansion of the spectrums, covering the remaining 17 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), effective 1 January 2025.
Commenting on the transactions, MTN Nigeria CEO Karl Toriola said, “We are pleased with the renewal of the spectrum lease agreement with NTEL, which now includes coverage for all states, including the FCT.
“The lease enables us to enhance our 3G and 4G user experience as we improve coverage and capacity by utilising the spectrums.
“This positions us to capitalise on the growing demand for data and improve the delivery of services to our customers.”
Nigeria’s technology company, Globacom, has extended warm felicitations to Nigerians on the occasion of the 2024 Christmas celebrations.
In a goodwill message released in Lagos, Globacom urged Nigerians to embrace the spirit of love and kindness during the festive season, especially in the face of prevailing economic challenges.
The company emphasized the importance of practicing the teachings of Jesus Christ, particularly the virtues of obedience to God and loving one’s neighbor as well.
“Christ taught many virtues including obedience to God and loving one’s neighbour as oneself”, the company said, adding, “Now is the apt time to practise these teachings by sharing with the needy”.
Globacom also encouraged Nigerians to extend the conviviality of Christmas beyond the festive season by fostering love, peace, and harmony, as demonstrated by God through the birth of Jesus Christ.
Assuring its customers of uninterrupted services throughout the Yuletide period and beyond, Globacom urged them to take advantage of its innovative products and services to stay connected and share the memories of the season with loved ones.
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) have ordered Deposit Money Banks and Mobile Network Operators to settle the long-standing N250bn USSD debt dispute before January 2, 2025.
The CBN and NCC also directed banks to pay the pre-Application Programming Interfaces (API) debt before July 2, 2025.
They also ordered that post-API debts be settled before December 31, 2024.
The directive was issued in a joint cirular titled, “2nd Joint Circular of the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Nigerian Communications Commission on the Resolution of the USSD Debt Issue Between Deposit Money Banks and Mobile Network Operators.”
The circular dated December 20, 2024, was signed by Oladimeji Taiwo, acting director of the Payments System Management Department, CBN, and Chizua Whyte, head of Legal and Regulatory Services, NCC.
The regulators said, “In view of the foregoing, the CBN and the NCC hereby direct DMBs and MNOs as follows: 1. That 60 per cent of all pre-API invoices must be paid as full and final settlement.
“Payment plans (lump sum or installments) must be agreed upon between a concerned DMB and MNO by January 2, 2025. Installments must be based on equal monthly payments, with full payment due by July 2, 2025.
“DMBs must pay 85 per cent of all outstanding invoices issued after the implementation of APIs (i.e., February 2022) by December 31, 2024.
“Similarly, 85 per cent of future invoices must be liquidated within one month of service.”
According to the regulators, the transition to end-user billing will be activated only for DMBs and MNOs that comply with the payment conditions cobtained in the circular.
CBN and the NCC said they would provide further guidance on public enlightenment initiatives related to the transition.
The regulators also directed MNOs to implement the “10-seconds rule” for USSD invoicing.
This implies that any session lasting less than ten seconds will not be billable.
The regulators added, “Failure to comply with the terms outlined in this directive will attract necessary sanctions, ensuring that both DMBs and MNOs uphold their obligations.”
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