Telecom
NITDA Unveils Top 30 Startups of the Bridge to MassChallenge Nigeria Programme
Bridge to MassChallenge Nigeria (B2MC Nigeria), a NITDA-sponsored national startup competition that identifies and accelerates the most high-impact startups across Nigeria, announced the 30 startups that will participate in an intensive, virtual boot camp between 24th of January and 18th of February 2022.
B2MC Nigeria is a collaborative programme between the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and MassChallenge, a global network for innovators, headquartered in the United States of America.
The participating startups will have access to tailored mentoring and coaching offered by NITDA and MassChallenge mentors, curated curriculum based on startups’ needs focusing on global best practices around innovation and entrepreneurship, and access to the MassChallenge global network.
The top 30 startups were selected after a rigorous online selection process evaluated by both local Nigerian innovation experts as well as experts representing the global MassChallenge community.
The boot camp will culminate in a pitch-competition that will determine the top 10 startups that will get access to curated support and connectivity into an existing MassChallenge innovation hub like Boston, MA, through a second boot camp.
“Startups play a significant role in the economic growth of every nation, by spurring innovation, injecting competition as well creating jobs.
“Nigeria’s burgeoning population offers innovative startups an opportunity to access a significantly vast market through developing and implementing viable solutions that are tailored at solving identified micro and macro-economic national challenges.
“The B2MC program will help facilitate the diversification of the economy and transforming every aspect of modern life to attain our key objectives of improving and expanding the economy, in line with the Nigeria Digital Economy Policy and Strategy for a Digital Nigeria (2020-2030) and NITDA’s Strategic Roadmap and Action Plan (2021-2024)”, said Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, NITDA’s Director General/CEO.
With this collaboration, NITDA and MassChallenge are actively pursuing their commitment to support entrepreneurs from underrepresented regions and across geopolitical zones to create more equitable distribution of and access to key resources for the growth of these startups.
The B2MC Nigeria selection drive is industry agnostic, thus a wide range of applications were received from the agricultural, Info-Tech, transport, finance industries to name a few. Applications from the six geopolitical regions were captured to provide an equitable playing field for our startups that will be supported, both within Nigeria and internationally.
“The launch of the first boot camp of the B2MC Nigeria 2021 program is designed to scout for the best of Nigerian technologies to help them sustain and grow within the Nigerian ecosystem and beyond.
“We’re excited to see the diverse representation of industries ranging from agriculture to Health Tech among the top 30 startups and to be able to work alongside NITDA to support the success of these businesses”, said Siobhan Dullea, CEO, MassChallenge.
Below is the complete list of the startups selected to participate in the B2MC Nigeria boot camp:
Agromate Nigeria: AgroMate is a youth-led agricultural development organization that leverages technology to improve the agricultural sector.
Aadana Smart Storage System: Aadana is a Solar Powered Smart Storage System which is smart. It can control/regulate the internal condition of the system.
Agbero: Agbero helps pre-book public inter-state travel vehicles in order to reduce waiting time and helps track real-time location for security’s sake.
Alaajo: Alaajo help users achieve their financial goals through savings automation, access to spot credit and simplified mortgage finance.
Avas Technologies Limited: AVAS Tech addresses prevalent identity verification problems across sub-saharan Africa using customized to environment biometric solutions.
Bridgingspace: An online platform that helps people with anxiety and depression get easy access to online counselling, support groups & self-care.
Bulkieshare: BulkieShare is a Platform that makes it easy and convenient for users to jointly purchase items DIRECT from farmers and manufacturers and then share accordingly.
Cartrep: Cartrep uses AI technology to connect last mile logistics companies with their customers within and outside their geographical coverage.
Cyber Security Challenge Nigeria Initiative: Cyber Security Challenge Nigeria Initiative focuses on identifying Nigeria’s next generation of cyber security professionals, connecting Nigeria’s best and brightest to the cyber security industry, creating an enabling platform for skill acquisition, youth empowerment and local content development in the area of information and cybersecurity towards national and economic development of Nigeria.
Daydone: An Agric eCommerce platform that brings farm produce and experience (using data) to the doorstep and fingertip of every consumer.
Dozzy Agricultural Enterprise: Dozzy Agricultural Enterprise is an integrated fish farm focused on closing the gap between market demand and supply of fish food
Edig-Ken Ventures: Hydroponics fodder production is when animal feed is grown without soil using little water and seed. Our solution is to provide sufficient, all-season availability and highly nutritional feed called fodder for livestock farmers to purchase for their animals.
Elcornel Business Enterprise: Elcornel Farm is dedicated to the use of high quality, modern and efficient food technology to meet demand for organic and quality food.
Eteicon: Eteicon uses recycled wastepaper to produce very hygienic and affordable toilet tissue for low-income families.
Evet Inc: Evet is a cloud-based platform that connects farmers to on demand agronomy advisory support, veterinary extension service and farm inputs.
Fuelintellisense Nigeria Limited: FuelIntellisense is a fuel management system that helps facilitates fuel inventory management and provides authorization for fuel dispensing.
Ghats Technology Innovative: I recently graduated from college with a HND in electronics & Telecommunications. I run a small engineering firm Ghats Technology Innovative
High Soles Farm Tours: By leveraging technology, we directly connect farmers with consumers that care about purchasing fresh produce at a lower cost.
Hydronamics: Hydronamics wishes to help bring clean running water to every home in developing countries, using prepaid water delivery services.
Maximus Recycling Solutions: provides households a chance to generate value from their waste and provide a reliable supply of raw material to the local recycling industry.
Moon Innovations: Moon Innovations is building generation of smart system for smart housing across Africa.
Mysolarbid Limited: MySolarBid helps homes and businesses save up to 70% on their monthly electricity costs through access to clean energy solutions.
Negs Empire: Negs Empire is a product and service based Agrictech company, majored in beekeeping, honey packaging and Farm management with probiotics.
Northflx Nigeria Limited: Northflix is a video streaming platform that targets Africans and those in diaspora with local contents that connect them with their culture.
Roborep: The RoboRep platform helps Genuine Medical Companies find Doctors, Hospitals and Pharmacies to sell their Medical products to.
Solio Leathers: Solio Leathers is a computer software integrated footwear manufacturing company with mission to drive footwear market in Nigeria and Africa.
Spacehunt Inc20: Spacehunt is a mobile app that creates a virtual immersive experience for properties/space renters and buyers.
Specxs Care Limited: We are a licensed healthcare company that is leveraging technology to increase access to healthcare using digital technology.
Sublime Squares: Sublime Squares developed an IoT based smart waste-bin solution to optimize the entire waste management process.
The Footwear Academy: The Footwear Academy is a hub that provides holistic solutions around footwear manufacturing and connects African shoemakers to the world.
Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has announced that it will approve tariff adjustment requests by network operators, in response to current market conditions.
The adjustments, capped at a maximum of 50% of current tariffs, are lower than the over 100% requested by some operators.
These changes will remain within the tariff bands stipulated in the 2013 NCC Cost Study and will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis, adhering to the NCC Guidance on Tariff Simplification, 2024.
The adjustments aim to address the gap between operational costs and current tariffs, ensuring service delivery is not compromised.
They will support operators in investing in infrastructure and innovation, benefiting consumers through improved services and connectivity.
The decision was made after extensive consultations with stakeholders, balancing consumer protection and industry sustainability.
The NCC has mandated transparent implementation and public education on the new rates, with a focus on measurable service improvements.
The NCC remains dedicated to fostering a resilient, innovative, and inclusive telecommunications sector, supporting indigenous vendors and suppliers, and promoting Nigeria’s digital economy.
The Commission will continue to engage with stakeholders to create a telecommunications environment that works for everyone.
Telecommunication subscribers under the aegis of Association of Telephone, Cable TV and Internet Subscribers of Nigeria (ATCIS-Nigeria), at the weekend rejected the 30-60 per cent tariff increase proposed by Bosun Tijani, minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, insisting that there should be no increase for now.
ATCIS-Nigeria said Tijani cannot speak for them, saying there is no conclusion on the tariff increase yet.
Sina Bilesanmi, national president, ATCIS-Nigeria in a statement, said a tariff hike was not one of the issues agreed upon with the regulator in Abuja, wondering why the minister is interested in hiking tariffs to the detriment of struggling Nigerians still reeling under the impact of economic reforms.
He said the minister’s statement was contrary to the agreements reached between the Consumer Bureau Department of the Commission of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and stakeholders at a meeting convened on January 9, 2025, at the NCC headquarters in Abuja.
According to him, what was agreed upon at the January 9 Abuja meeting was that there would be no telecoms tariff hike for now until all the stakeholders, particularly the subscribers, are sufficiently enlightened and sensitised.
Recall that the minister, in a TV interview, had said even though the mobile network operators (MNOs) were demanding a 100 per cent increase to stabilise the sector, the government knew that such a level of increase would be harmful to the people.
On the threshold of the expected hike, he said: “I think it should not be more than anywhere between 30 to 60 per cent. We have already made it clear that we are not going to approve 100 per cent. These companies are asking for 100 per cent, stating clearly that this is what they believe they need to get.
“But what we are looking at in terms of the sector is that if this is the sector that is responsible for driving growth in our country, it will be harmful to our people to allow MNOs to increase by 100 per cent.”
However, Bilesanmi said it was not the duty of the minister to speak for tariff pricing, insisting that it is the responsibility of the NCC which has already started doing the consultation to do data-based empirical cost analysis.
He said the minister has no power to fix prices in a liberalised market.
“Our resolution was, one, that the telecom operators need to respect the telecom subscriber advocacy body and the act of NCC; that the NCC should tell the telcos to first meet with ATCIS being the telecom subscriber advocacy body for consultation, involvement, enlightenment, and engagement; that once telecom subscriber advocacy body agreed, it will call for public opinions on the per cent rate, and that ATCIS will then write NCC for approval, and anything outside of these may not work.
“As subscribers, we should be in collaboration with NCC because we’re the ones paying the money involved. We agreed at the meeting that there will be no hike but further deliberation and consultation on the issue with relevant stakeholders, especially the MNOs and the subscribers would continue.
“The MNOs, through their representatives (ATCON and ALTON), were supposed to organise an enlightenment/sensitisation programme to address the issues. The MNOs were supposed to discuss the percentage increment with the subscribers’ representatives after which it will be taken to the subscribers for discussion. At the end of the meetings, we were expected to communicate an equilibrium price (a fair price agreeable to all) to the NCC for final approval,” he said.
According to Bilesanmi, any tariff hike will do more harm than good to the subscribers at a time when they are struggling to cope.
“It will further impoverish our members, especially small business owners whose offices and shops are their mobile phones and laptops. A hike in voice and data prices without recourse to the subscribers will spell doom for their business,” he said, adding that it might slow down the gains of the government’s digital economy ambition.
“ATCIS is the leading telecom subscriber advocacy body in Nigeria with over 220 million members across 36 states in the six geo-political zones in Nigeria.
“It has a mission to promote mutual co-existence, and fair play, and defend the rights of telecom subscribers, by endorsing and ensuring good products and network service delivery from network operators and service providers to our corporate and individual members, while providing a platform to advance the rights of Telephone, Cable Tv and Internet Subscribers.”
MTN Nigeria Communications (MTNN) Plc has raised the sum of N42.20 billion through the commercial paper (CP) issuance.
Karl Toriola, chief executive officer, MTN Nigeria
The company in a statement signed by Uto Ukpanah, its secretary, notified Nigerian Exchange Limited and the investing public of the successful completion of its Series 15 and 16 Commercial Paper issuance under the Company’s N250 billion Commercial Paper Issuance Programme where the Company raised N42.20 billion.
It added that “the 180-day and 270-day CP were issued at yields of 27.50 per cent and 29.00 per cent, respectively, with an issue date of December 23, 2024.
This follows the successful completion of two prior CP issuances in the last two months.”
MTNN stated that the proceeds will be applied towards the Company’s short-term working capital requirements.
Karl Toriola, chief executive officer, MTN Nigeria, said, “we are grateful for the success of this transaction which underscores investor confidence in MTN Nigeria’s business model and management team.
“The CP Issuance is part of our established funding strategy and would not have been possible without the unwavering support of the investor community, as well as our advisers.”
MTN Nigeria has been actively raising funds through its N250 billion Commercial Paper Issuance Programme, a strategic initiative designed to support its operational and business goals.
The recent Series 15 and 16 issuances achieved an 84.4 per cent subscription, reflecting ongoing investor interest. On November 29, 2024, the company successfully launched Series 13 and 14 Commercial Papers, offering yields of 27.50 per cent for the 181-day tenor and 29.00 per cent for the 270-day tenor.
Initially aimed at N50 billion, these issuances saw overwhelming demand, resulting in an oversubscription of 144 per cent and ultimately raising N72.18 billion.
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