Telecom
NCS urges FG to Ensure Strict Compliance of EOs 003, 005
Prof Adesola Aderounmu, President, Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) has called on the federal government to ensure 100 percent compliance of Executive orders 003 and 005 if we are to solve the unemployment menace in the country.
He noted that presently, compliance to the orders are not being implemented 100 percent, stating that government should ensure that it supports ailing local IT Firms to scale up in order to stop mass exodus of exceptionally brilliant indigenous ICT skills to other countries who will sell the same skills back to Nigeria at exorbitant rates and attendant capital flight.
Prof Aderounmu made this call on Tuesday during a press conference to announce the 14th International Conference of the Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) billed to hold from Tuesday 16th to Thursday 19th of July, 2019, at the International Conference Centre, Gombe.
He emphasized that support for local content in public procurement by the Federal Government will definitely contribute in the creation of more jobs for our present and youthful population.
He decried the disturbing high level of disregard for contracts entered into with indigenous firms compared with the “high level of respect” accorded to foreign counterparts by the government.
Using REMITA as an example, the NCS President urged federal government to lead by example by ensuring that it comply with its obligation with regard to the services rendered to her through REMITA software.
He bemoaned them for their inability to hold its part of the agreement entered with SystemSpecs despite the services rendered to her through REMITA software.
He implored on them to pay SystemSpecs the total cost of all their services rendered to date.
Prof Aderounmu noted that the ICT Roadmap of the Federal Government could only achieve its desired goals, when local IT Firms are appreciated and respected for their innovation, intellectual property and pace setting accomplishments.
Giving further insight on how government could solve the unemployment crisis in Nigeria, Prof Aderounmu said that IT projects in the country could resolve the unemployment crisis if properly executed.
He noted that the National Identity Management System (NIMS) project as one of the projects that could address the lingering unemployment crisis if backed with regulatory innovations that will ensure economic growth.
He commended the current administration for the integration of the National Identity Number (NIN) into the issuance and renewal of International Passports by the Nigeria Immigration Service, stressing that such regulatory innovations will definitely result in economic growth.
Prof Aderounmu also called on government to quickly mediate on the lingering debacle between Chams Plc and NIMC, stressing that an amicable resolution of the impasse will restore faith in the Executive orders 003 and 005 of the present administration.
According to him, “NCS calls for urgent and decisive intervention to salvage Chams Plc’s position and allow Chams Plc and Chams Consortium Ltd reap the fruits of an amicable resolution freely entered into with the NIMC.
“It is on record that Chams made huge investments, in excess of N9bn, into the concession.
“Chams however suffered many frustrations which eventually snowballed into an unresolved state of affairs.
“It is in the light of the foregoing, NCS request that NIMC stand by and enforce the Terms of the Mediation Agreement dated 19th December, 2017 to enable Chams Plc execute assigned business opportunities under the NIMS project and hence regain stability towards restoring its Share Valuation which has suffered massive erosion consequence of the plight on the NIMC project.
“That NIMC, in line with Clause 3.1 of the Terms of Agreement collaborate with Chams Plc to provide adequate financial cushion and compensation to CCL for the funds invested into the project already by CCL.
“CCL has indicated its immediate willingness and ability to perform its own side of the Terms of Agreement.
“Furthermore, under a conducive environment, CCL has indicated that it has the capacity and capability to enrol more than 50 million Nigerians annually and could, if well-empowered, issue the enrolees with National ID cards.
“To that end, CCL has engaged some international partners who are willing to support the Government in achieving these noble goals at record speed.
“It is our understanding that early resolution of this crisis will lead to creation of additional 1000 jobs for the youths through Information Technology.
Also, Prof Aderounmu urged government to intervene in the matter between Omatek Group and Bank of Industry (BOI) in order to bring amicable resolution to the problem.
The NCS president called the FG to prevail in the matter and urge BOI to vacate court order, noting that locking up a factory for over 24 months with goods worth billions of Naira is not in the best interest of any of the stakeholders.
He emphasized that Omatek is a major employer of Nigerian youth at peak production, capable of employing over 600 teeming youth both directly and indirectly.
He noted that some of the goods and materials for which the loans were sorted would have been obsolete and rusted away.
He stated that the problem should be settled out of court, stressing that Omatek Ventures has indicated that it is open to settlement out of court.
Nigeria will criminalize the destruction of broadband fiber cables following repeated complaints by MTN Nigeria Communications Plc and other telecommunications companies that they are losing billions of naira, according to people familiar with the matter.
Federal ministry of works, which supervises federal road constructors, is finalizing the regulation that will be signed as an executive order by President Bola Tinubu, said the people, asking not to be identified as they weren’t authorized to comment.
While there are presently laws against vandalism, the authorities are aiming to regulate construction firms more closely.
The order will enforce stiff penalties on offenders, said the people, declining to provide more details or say when it will be signed.
“Telecom assets are critical backbone that supports the economy across sectors,” said Temitope Ajayi, a senior presidential aide, who noted that the Association of Telecommunications Companies (ATCON) has been demanding the classification for years.
New rules will provide “further assurance that the Nigerian government will protect their investments against vandals and criminal elements.”
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) estimates that the sector will make up more than a fifth of the country’s gross domestic product by the end of 2027, up from 13.5% in the third quarter of last year.
The move will help alleviate pressure on the telecoms sector, which is facing increased operating costs and sales pressures from a sharp depreciation in the currency and a threefold increase in energy prices.
Repairs and revenue losses from damaged cables is estimated to have cost the sector almost 27 billion naira ($23 million) last year alone, documents seen by Bloomberg show.
MTN Nigeria, the biggest wireless operator in Africa’s most-populous nation, and Airtel Africa Plc bore the brunt of the costs, the documents show.
MTN suffered more than 6,000 cuts on its fiber cable last year, the documents show. On Feb. 28, a cut on its network in three different locations by a road construction firm, an oil serving company and someone burning rubbish in a manhole meant customers faced more than five hours of data and voice outages.
The operator relocated 2,500 kilometers (1,553 miles) of vulnerable fiber cables between 2022 and 2023, at a cost of more than 11 billion naira – enough to build 870 kilometers of new fiber lines to areas without coverage.
A presidential order on the matter would be welcomed, said Tony Izuagbe Emoekpere, president, Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria.
“When it comes to communication infrastructure, they are destroyed at will, so we are eagerly awaiting the president’s order,” he said. “It would be a great boost to the industry, and it will also encourage investment.”
Telegram, the messaging giant founded by Pavel Durov and headquartered in Dubai, anticipates hitting a remarkable milestone of one billion active monthly users within the next year.
Durov’s departure from Russia in 2014, prompted by governmental pressures to stifle opposition communities on his VK social media platform, underscores Telegram’s commitment to neutrality despite geopolitical challenges.
With 900 million active users currently, Telegram stands as a beacon of free speech in the digital realm, particularly influential in former Soviet Union republics and pivotal during conflicts like the Russia-Ukraine standoff.
Durov’s staunch advocacy for freedom of expression and opposition to censorship by tech giants like Apple and Google reinforces Telegram’s status as a neutral platform.
Opting for the UAE as its base, Durov cites its neutrality and openness as conducive to Telegram’s ethos, serving both opposition groups and governments alike while maintaining impartiality.
In Durov’s vision, the pursuit of freedom eclipses material gain, shaping Telegram’s trajectory as a bastion of digital liberation.
To further strengthen Nigeria’s digital economy in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) have announced a collaboration on National Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) and Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) to enhance and create synergy between digital identity, payment ecosystem, and secure & seemless data exchange capabilities for Nigeria.
During the meeting between the Director-General of NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, and Director General of NIMC, Engr. Bisoye Coker-Odusote, with some management staff of both organisations, they discussed various initiatives, which include building DPI stacks for a secured and seamless data exchange and forming partnerships to transform the national identity system.
This collaboration also aims to harness the potential of the innovative ecosystem and emphasise the use of Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) to drive digital transformation in Nigeria.
To ensure a smooth implementation, a 12-man committee was set up. This committee will play a crucial role in kickstarting and harmonising the initiatives. It is expected to deliver a comprehensive implementation report within the next 4 weeks
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