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NCC, USPF, Others Advance FG’s Digital Economy Agenda

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L-R: Prof. Umar Danbatta, Executive-Vice Chairman, NCC, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba, Minister of State for Education, Hope Uzodinma, Governor of Imo State/Chairman of the Occasion and Dr. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, during the virtual commissioning of 11 new ICT Projects located across the country which were executed by agencies under the Ministry in Abuja on Tuesday, August 11, 2020.
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The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF) and three other agencies under the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy have continued to implement people-oriented projects to advance the digital economy agenda of President Muhammad Buhari.

 

The other agencies are the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited (NIGCOMSAT), Galaxy Backbone and the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST).

 

Their commitment in this direction was, once again, demonstrated during the virtual commissioning of 11 new Information and Communications Technology (ICT) projects implemented by the agencies under the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy by the Minister, Dr. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, in Abuja at the Communications & Digital Economy Complex on Tuesday, August 11, 2020.

 

The projects, which were commissioned virtually across the country by the Minister include the Emergency Communication Centres (ECC’s) in Ilorin, Kwara State and Calabar, Cross River.

 

Other projects commissioned include the e-Health/Data Sharing Centre, Medical College, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi; and Virtual Examination Centre, University of Maiduguri, Borno State, all implemented by the NCC.

 

Two projects executed by the USPF were also commissioned; they include, the Tertiary Institution Knowledge Centre (TIKC), Delta State and School Knowledge Centre (SKC) located at Government Day Secondary School, Hassan Central, Gombe State.

 

NITDA implemented three projects: the Information Technology (IT) and Incubation Park, University of Ayangba, Kogi State, ICT Capacity Building Centres at the College of Education, Gumel, Jigawa State and Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Imo State.

 

Also commissioned were the new Neighborhood Post Office/NIRSAL Microfinance bank branch, Delta State and the Remodeled National Mail Exchange Centre (Mbiama), Ahoada West Local Government Area of River State executed by NIPOST.

 

Speaking at the commissioning, Pantami, who noted that over 500 projects have been executed by agencies under the ministry in the past five years, said the projects are connected to the tripartite agenda of the President focusing on enhancing national security, diversification of the economy and curbing corruption.

 

Pantami stated that the 11 projects are in sync with seven of the eight pillars of the country’s National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) unveiled by the President last year.

 

He thanked the President for being supportive of the Ministry’s initiative towards addressing extant challenges of vandalism of telecom infrastructure, Right of Way (RoW) issues, among others in order to accelerate broadband penetration to 70 per cent as envisaged by the National Broadband Plan (2020-2025).

 

Prof. Adeolu Akande, chairman, Governing Board of NCC, thanked the Minister for the visibility he is giving the projects being executed by the agencies under the Ministry, while the Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, reiterated the commitment of the Commission towards implementing policies and programmes aimed at fast-tracking the advancement of digital economy vision of the Federal Government.

 

The event was well attended by governors and ministers, who were special guests among whom were the Governor of Imo, who was Chairman of the occasion, Governor of Gombe State, Minister of Interior, Minister of State for Education, Minister of State for Mines and Power, as well as the staff of the Ministry, board members and heads of agencies under the ministry, among others.

 

The special guests commended the Minister for commissioning the important projects and for enhancing synergy between the Ministry and its agencies.

 


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Ugo Onwuaso is an ICT enthusiast. He believes technology should be used for general good. He holds a Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree from the Lagos state University. Dear Reader, Your support matters. But we believe that technology makes life more exciting and helps improve the lives of people around Nigeria and indeed the world. That is why, we have devoted our energy to independent reportage of technology and finance and how they affect lives. Our incisive and analytical view of how technology news affects the daily life help individuals and organizations make up their minds. Quality journalism costs money. Today, we're asking that you support us to do more. Kindly support our effort to deliver technology and finance journalism to everyone in the world. Donate as little as N1,000. Bank transfers can be made to: UBA Plc 1017156876 Communication Week Media Ltd

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MTN Mulls AI Tech to Protect Infrastructure as Cable Cuts Hit 13,000 in 18 Months

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MTN Nigeria has said that there are plans to deploy an artificial intelligence (AI) technology to monitor and protect its fibre optic cables across the country.

MTN Mulls AI Tech to Protect Infrastructure as Cable Cuts Hit 13,000 in 18 Months

Yahaya Ibrahim, chief technical officer (CTO), MTN, said the technology will detect vibrations, identify the cause, and alert relevant personnels.

According to Ibrahim who spoke during a session for the ongoing MTN Media Innovation Progamme, the proposed innovation comes amid concerns over the growing spate of telecoms infrastructure vandalism, which have led to multiple cable cuts, and the destruction of towers.

This, he said, would enable the company to promptly deploy agents to the site.

The system is being developed in collaboration with Huawei Technologies.

Providing data on fibre cut incidents in an email correspondence, the CTO said MTN recorded over 9,000 cable cuts in 2024.

He said 4,700 cables were destroyed as at the end of June 2025 alone, bringing the total to about 13,700 incidents in 18 months.

A breakdown of the incidents by zone showed that about 2,500 cuts occurred in northern Nigeria, 2,800 in south-west, while 3,500 were recorded in the south-east and south-south regions combined.

“If we look at the cuts per region, the Southeastern and South South states have more cuts and this is where we have the most hotspots for Fibre and site vandalism,” Ibrahim said.

“Akwa Ibom, Abia and Rivers stand out in states. While in specific locations Omoku and Egbema stand out for fibre vandalization.”

The MTN official said vandalism and road construction account for 69 percent of total cable cuts across the country.

Ibrahim said the incidents often disrupt services, with an average downtime of 15 hours recorded per month.

“Some regions are higher than others,” he said.

“All services will be down, that means no one will be able to use any services.

“We spent N17.6b in 2024 and budget for 2025 based on PO issued for maintenance and relocation is N26.3b.”

In addition to the expenditure, MTN is said to also conduct route patrol, route monitoring, and construction bypass — which involves the creation an alternative route that allows for the temporary or permanent relocation of essential resources around a construction site.

Ibrahim said the telco also invests in having a diverse route for resilience, relocation of fibre, holding stakeholder engagement, and working with communities for policing.

The technical officer confirmed that there are collaborations in place with state and federal authorities to secure fibre routes.

 

 

 


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NASENI and BPP Forge Nigeria First Alliance to Champion Local Goods and Services

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National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) and the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) on Monday, 28th July 2025, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the implementation of “Nigeria First” Policy on Procurement, projects and other related matters.

The Nigeria First Policy is an initiative of the Federal Government, aimed at promoting Nigerian-made goods, services and utilization of Local content, infrastructures and other value chain.

As part of the Renewed Hope Agenda initiative of the Government, the policy seeks to encourage local production and consumption of Nigerian goods or services, also to support Nigerian business and entrepreneurs, foster economic growth and development, reduce dependency on imported goods and to promote Nigerian culture and identity. Also, by prioritizing local content, the policy aimed to create jobs, stimulate economic activity, and increase Nigeria’s global competitiveness.

Speaking at the  MoU signing ceremony which took place at the Headquarters of Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) office in Abuja, the Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive of NASENI, Mr. Khalil Suleiman Halilu, said, with the signing of MoU and implementation of the Nigeria First Policy, 80% of challenges faced while trying to convince investors and foreign partners would have been solved, as Nigeria will cease to be dumping ground for foreign goods, while focusing on promotion of Nigerian products, goods and services.

Halilu said that with support now coming from BPP, the over 50 market ready NASENI products will be off the shelves and gain patronage of Nigerians, adding that NASENI has gained for the country over 2 billion dollars from its recent partnership activities with China alone.

“One thing that is clear when I took over the leadership of NASENI was the determination to move the Agency from just producing prototypes to commercialization of its technologies and products, this was complemented by the turn around which we did in rebranding the Agency.

“We have 50 market-ready Nigeria branded products. NASENI is building the biggest renewable energy park in Nasarawa and has entered into partnership with Abuja Technology Village to boost Technology Transfer and innovation, enhance local manufacturing capacity, transform NASENI’s research-focused installation into full production facilities, promote national brands and local production”, he further explained.

Buttressing the partnership between NASENI and BPP, he said that it is expected that the policy would have transformative impacts on Nigeria’s economy and human capital development, aligning with national goals for industrialization, youth employment, and economic diversification. “This also shows that our efforts are not in vain:”

Earlier in his speech, the Director-General of Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) Dr. Adebowale Adedokun said that the MoU between BPP and NASENI offers a structured bridge between production and procurement and how to take locally made solutions off the shelves and to place them at the center of public service delivery, which aimed at aligning Government policies with national priorities as well as giving practical force to the Nigeria First Policy.

According to him, “NASENI’s innovations, from tractors to tablets, from surveillance drones to solar backup systems, will now be actively prioritized in the procurement plans by Ministries, Departments, and Agencies. We are institutionalizing a framework that makes local options not just preferable, but the default option before all others.

Specifically, he said further that with the signing of the MoU, the “BPP will now integrate NASENI’s Product catalogue into the Nigeria Open Contracting Portal, NOCOPO, and therefore encouraging other MDAs to follow suit”

He noted that the “Nigeria First Policy is not an act of protectionism, but an act of patriotism grounded in performance, and it is targeted at fastracking Nigeria’s industrial revolution”. He remarked that “NASENI has invested in quality assurance. Its products are certified by national institutions such as SON and NAFDAC. This means NASENI’s offerings will now be visible, verifiable, and measurable across all MDAs. First, we are integrating NASENI’s catalogue into the Nigeria Open Contracting Portal, NOCOPO. Between January and June this year alone, NOCOPO’s enhanced price intelligence has helped Nigeria save over 173 billion naira, 155 million dollars, and 1.7 million euros.”

While calling on all MDAs to follow NASEN’s footprint in promoting Made in Nigeria products, he said that the BPP’s revised threshold is now five billion naira for goods and ten billion for works, meaning that MDAs can act faster, while they continue to strengthen post-review and audit mechanisms.

He emphasized that the role of BPP is to ensure that these standards are rewarded with access, and that MDAs no longer look outside when the best is being made inside. “For the avoidance of doubt, let me say here that we will be backing this commitment with reform actions”.


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Treepz Launches in Canada, Secures University of Toronto-Supported Program as First Corporate Travel Client

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Treepz, Africa’s fast-growing corporate mobility technology company, has expanded its operations into Canada, marking a significant milestone in its global strategy. The announcement was made at Brampton City Hall, Ontario, with full support from the Mayor of Brampton, Patrick Brown.

The event, which featured key stakeholders and dignitaries, included the official announcement of Treepz’s partnership with the African Impact Initiative, a University of Toronto-sponsored program. Under the agreement, Treepz will provide comprehensive travel logistics—including flights, accommodation, experiences, and ground transportation—for program participants visiting four African countries: South Africa, Kenya, Ghana, and Rwanda.

Speaking at the launch, Mayor Brown described the expansion as “a proud moment for Brampton,” lauding Treepz’s founders for creating a brand that has served over six million customers since its inception in Nigeria in 2019. He added that Treepz’s ability to manage mobility in Lagos, one of Africa’s busiest cities, is a testament to the strength of its operational capacity.

Onyeka Akumah, Treepz Founder and CEO, expressed gratitude to city officials and program partners, noting that the move solidifies Treepz’s role as a globally recognized African brand.

“This launch is a strong statement of intent, not just for Treepz, but for all African startups. We are proud to be serving clients in both Africa and North America,” he said.

Treepz’s entry into Canada was supported by several Canadian organisations, including the World Trade Center’s TAP program, the Black Entrepreneurship Alliance, and the BHive Program.

It follows Treepz’s participation in the Techstars Toronto Accelerator in 2021, which played a pivotal role in its expansion roadmap.

The launch signals a new era for Treepz’s operations and marks a historic moment for African-led innovation in the global travel technology space.


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