News
Nigeria in Positive as MEA IT Market Records Mixed fortunes
Contrary to a general trend of decline in ICT equipment and device shipment across the Middle East and Africa (MEA) markets, there was still cheering news in the shipments of blade servers which grew 10.9 per cent across the region, with the biggest annual growth seen in Nigeria, UAE, Pakistan and Oman.
According to latest results published by IDC (International Data Corporation), the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the IT, telecom and consumer technology markets, the overall MEA x86 server market suffered a 5.9 per cent year-on-year decline in unit terms during the first quarter of 2013 but a 3.0 per cent increase in value to reach $321.94 million.
Zeeshan Gaya, research manager for servers and systems at IDC MEA and Turkey said Saudi Arabia continues to be the bright spot among the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, registering year-on-year unit growth of 31.0 per cent.
“Deals within the education and government sector were the major contributors to the high uptake. But in sharp contrast, the UAE market experienced a severe decline of 21.5 per cent over the same period, with no sizeable projects taking place in the country.”
Overall, the GCC suffered a drop of 10.8 per cent in volume during Q1 2013 but expanded 4.4 per cent in terms of revenue. Bahrain and Qatar registered double-digit drops in x86 shipments of 28.4 per cent and 17.6 per cent, respectively.
Key initiatives in the banking sector accelerated Oman’s growth by 12.6 per cent in volume and 58.2 per cent in revenue, year on year.
Kuwait remained mostly flat for the quarter, expanding 1.4 per cent in volume on the back of a few deals in the education and government sectors.
The downward trend continued in the North African market in Q1 2013, with shipments to the region declining 25.1 per cent year on year. “In Morocco, there was shrinkage in the number of deals taking place in both the public and private sectors during the quarter, with several key projects either resized with smaller budgets or simply postponed,” said Gaya.
“The government and the oil and gas sector remain the highest spending verticals in Algeria and Tunisia, although the first quarter of the year was very slow in both countries, with very few projects taking place.”
As previously forecast, the South African x86 server market experienced a year-on-year unit decline of 11.7 per cent.
IDC observed that the main drivers for the country market in Q1 2013 were the business services, government, finance, and retail sectors.
“Telecom operators are continuing to invest in server infrastructure to expand their datacenters as they seek to diversify their service offerings, largely around readiness for cloud service delivery as the demand for cloud services start unfolding,” said Gaya.
“The small and medium-sized business (SMB) space continues to show demand for servers as such organizations are late deployers’ of server virtualization and IT infrastructure renewals. The public sector was also relatively active in Q1 2013 as national governments headed towards their budget deadlines and allocated additional spending to clear up any remaining funds.”
The overall negative trend was observed uniformly across all form factors in the MEA region. Towers took the biggest hit, suffering a 15.5 per cent decline in shipments year on year, followed by rack and density-optimized servers, which slumped 8.7 per cent and 4.2 per cent, respectively.
Contrary to this trend, shipments of blade servers grew 10.9 per cent across the MEA region, with the biggest annual growth seen in the UAE, Pakistan, Oman, and Nigeria.
Eight-socket servers took a hit in the first quarter of the year, recording a year-on-year volume decline of 41.8 per cent.
One-socket and two–socket server shipments shrunk by 9.1 per cent and 4.9 per cent, respectively. Two-socket servers remain the dominant capability, comprising more than half the MEA market with 70.3 per cent volume share.
Two Nigerian lawyers have sued promoters of the Nigerian Law Society (NLS) over allegations of electoral fraud and unlawful use of personal data.
The legal actions follow the recent election conducted by the NLS, a breakaway association formed as an alternative to the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), to elect its national officers.
In one of the suits, marked FHC/ABJ/05/1506/2025 and filed before the Federal High Court in Abuja, a lawyer, Timothy Tersugh Ahua, is challenging the conduct of the election and the legitimacy of the electoral process.
Ahua named several NLS promoters, including prominent lawyers, as defendants.
They include Senior Advocates, Chief Mela Audu Nunghe, Dr. Ugoji Eze, Secretary of the NLS Electoral Committee, and Chief Bolaji, Chairman of the NLS.
Others named in the suit are Ferguson Chioma Blessing, Chief Emeka Ichoku, and Tejumola Adigun.
Citing provisions of the Federal High Court Civil Procedure Rules, Ahua is asking the court to declare that the NLS electoral process violated its constitution.
He is seeking a declaration that all unopposed candidates, including himself, be declared elected, as published by Dr. Tonye Clinton Jaja, the alternate Chairman of the NLS Electoral Committee.
Ahua claims he was duly nominated for the position of Secretary General but was unjustly excluded, accusing the defendants of hand-picking candidates in breach of the rules.
He further alleged that the exclusion caused him financial loss, reputational damage, and personal hardship, urging the court to correct what he described as a grave injustice.
In a separate suit before the Federal High Court in Abeokuta, another lawyer, Oluwadare Thomas, sued Chief Mela Nunghe, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Dr. Ugoji Eze, the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), and the Nigerian Data Protection Commission (NDPC), over alleged violation of his data privacy rights.
Thomas is asking the court to determine whether the use and publication of his personal data by NLS election officials without his consent amounts to a breach of Section 37 of the 1999 Constitution and the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023.
He also wants the court to consider whether the use of the NLS name for the election, despite a CAC notice and a pending suit, constitutes contempt of court and abuse of legal process.
He is seeking several declaratory and injunctive reliefs, including a court order restraining the continued use of his personal data and an order compelling NITDA and NDPC to investigate and sanction the respondents.
Thomas is also demanding N50m in compensation for the alleged unlawful processing and exposure of his personal information.
The National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) has congratulated Chief Owolabi Salis on his successful space flight. He becomes the first person of Nigerian birth to travel to space.
Chief Salis privately funded his space mission, demonstrating the deep interest of Nigerians to participate in scientific, exploratory, tourism and commercial space activities. His achievement highlights new opportunities for private sector engagement in space Program.
This milestone brings significant international attention to Nigeria’s space program, capabilities, while positioning the nation among countries where citizens actively participate in space activities.
In a statement signed by Dr. Felix Ale, director, Media and Corporate Communications, NASRDA, stated that chief Salis’s successful mission represents one pathway for Nigerian space participation. “His achievement complements NASRDA’s ongoing efforts to expand access to space exploration for Nigerian citizens.
“NASRDA received notification of Chief Salis’s mission through our partner organization, Space Research and Exploration Agency (SERA), prior to the flight. His success demonstrates the expanding opportunities now available to Nigerians in the space sector.
“However, it must be emphasized that the NASRDA-SERA collaborative mission, announced in June 2024, remains on course for an upcoming Blue Origin flight. This program represents a different pathway, providing opportunities for broader Nigerian participation through open competition.
“Our collaborative mission will enable Nigerian citizens to participate in astronaut selection and contribute to the development of research proposals. Eligibility extends to all Nigerian citizens aged 18 and above through transparent, merit-based selection criteria.
“Research priorities for the NASRDA-SERA mission will also be determined through public input from Nigerian citizens. This approach ensures the mission addresses national priorities identified by Nigerian citizens,” the statement added.
The application portal for the NASRDA-SERA program will open in the coming weeks. Detailed application procedures will be announced prior to the portal’s activation.
NASRDA celebrates Chief Salis’s contribution to raising awareness about space exploration opportunities for Nigerians. His private investment demonstrates the practical commitment of Nigerian citizens to advancing our national space participation.
Chief Salis’s achievement marks a defining moment for Nigeria’s space ambitions. Nigeria now has both private citizens and government programs actively pursuing space exploration, positioning the nation as an active participant in the global space economy.
For additional information regarding NASRDA programs or the SERA collaborative mission, contact the agency’s Media and Corporate Communication Department.
The Nigerian Insurers Association has urged the House Committee on Capital Market and Institutions to respect the constitutional separation of powers as it carries out a probe on over 20 insurance firms.
In a statement on Tuesday night, the Director General/Chief Executive Officer of NIA, Mrs Bola Odukale, said the decision of NIA and the affected firms to approach the court was to seek clarity on the constitutional limits of the House Committee’s probe.
It would be recalled that the House of Representatives on Monday is investigating no fewer than 25 insurance companies operating in the country for various financial infractions spanning financial reporting, claims settlement, premium remittance, and issuance of policies.
The Chairman, House Sub-Committee on Capital Market and Institutions, Kwamoti Laori, during a meeting with the management of the insurance companies at the National Assembly Complex in Abuja, said the meeting was convened following the receipt of a petition on infractions by the insurance companies.
In the statement, Odukale said, “The Association wishes to state unequivocally that all actions taken by the NIA and the affected member companies in response to the Committee’s invitations and pronouncements were based entirely on legal advice by its Solicitors. It was on the firm instruction of legal counsel that recourse was made to the courts.
“The objective of approaching the Court is to seek judicial guidance on the legality, propriety, and constitutional limits of the Committee’s intervention in order to safeguard institutional integrity, uphold regulatory independence, and ensure that legislative oversight remains within the bounds of law.
“The Court action seeks to determine whether the current posture of the Committee reflects an exercise of legislative judgment, which, by constitutional design, is the exclusive province of statutory regulators, such as the National Insurance Commission, Securities and Exchange Commission, Nigerian Exchange, Financial Reporting Council, Nigeria Data Protection Commission, and the National Information Technology Development Agency.
“This raises serious questions about legislative overreach and an erosion of the doctrine of separation of powers, a cornerstone of Nigeria’s constitutional democracy.”
Odukale maintained that the NIA was committed to lawful and constructive engagement with all arms of government, provided that such engagement respects the autonomy of statutory regulators and the boundaries established by the Constitution.
“The NIA will continue to provide its full support to all member companies while upholding the principles of legal compliance and sector-wide integrity,” Odukale concluded.
17 of the companies that went to court were represented by their lawyer, Mr Abimbola Kayode, at the meeting with the committee.
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