The recent demand by Abuja Municipal Area Council’s (AMAC) for a business owner in the area council to pay a N500,000 levy for owning a television set has sparked outrage across AMAC.

Nyesom Wike Minister, Federal Capital Territory of Nigeria

The demand notice, which surfaced online, has triggered widespread criticism and legal challenges over excessive taxation in Nigeria.

The controversy began when AMAC issued a demand notice to Tela Network Ltd, an Abuja-based infotech firm, requiring it to pay N1 million in arrears for 2023 and 2024, a N500,000 fine, and a N500,000 levy for 2025—totaling N2 million.

The notice directed payment to a designated bank within 14 days.

In response, Tela Network Ltd, through its legal representatives, contested the levy, arguing that the company does not engage in radio or television broadcasting and should not be subject to such charges.

The firm requested AMAC to clarify the legal basis for the demand.

AMAC defended its position, citing a 2012 by-law that classifies businesses into tax categories. The council maintained that “Computer Service Generally” falls under Category B, requiring an annual TV/Radio license fee of N1 million.

The levy has drawn sharp criticism from Abuja residents and legal experts. Many describe it as an unfair financial burden, especially in light of Nigeria’s economic struggles.

Residents argue that taxation should be tied to service delivery, questioning why they should pay exorbitant fees for television ownership when public services remain inadequate.

Social media users have also condemned the levy, with many calling it excessive and exploitative.

A legal expert, Iroh, representing Tela Network Ltd, described the law as draconian and suggested it should be challenged in court.

He acknowledged that while AMAC has the authority to make by-laws, the levy’s implementation appears arbitrary and oppressive.

Liborous Oshoma, human rights lawyer criticized the tax, stating that such levies disproportionately affect low-income individuals while the wealthy often evade enforcement. He urged residents to challenge the demand legally.

Efforts to reach Emeka James, spokesperson, AMAC, were unsuccessful, further fueling speculation and frustration among the affected parties.

By Linda Saunders, country leader and senior director solutions engineering Africa at Salesforce

Generative AI has transformed how people interact with technology through prompts, and the next frontier promises an even greater impact. As organisations refine their AI strategies, we are witnessing the next chapter of work and the emergence of digital labour with agentic AI.

Since the launch of Chat GPT  many business leaders focused on what they thought was the right topic – the Large Language Models ( LLMs). But these models are quickly becoming a commodity, as each one races to build the best for a specific use case.

To truly unlock value from AI, you need to focus on everything around the model such as the orchestration, the low code / no code approach to building and refining, the metadata framework and a data engine that compliments the data strategy. It’s this platform advantage that is seeing agents across the globe stand up and deliver value with real data, leveraging real integration in a few short weeks.

To unlock the action and value of generative AI requires  a deeply integrated and connected platform with a one code base, but this takes significant time and money to build unless you have already been empowering your human employees on the Salesforce platform. Our platform leverages everything you have built to empower your digital workforce. Its a win-win where even for those who are not quite ready for a digital workforce – will be unlocking their ability to pivot to an agentic workforce with every flow, cloud, integration and build – Ultimately  future proofing their business.

Agentic technology is a multi-trillion-dollar industry opportunity. The agentic enterprise  will operate with unprecedented independence capable of responding to queries and handling complex tasks autonomously. This autonomy will optimise workflows, drive innovation, and break down barriers related to the need for continuous human intervention.

By 2028, Gartner predicts that 33% of enterprise software applications will include agentic AI, up from less than 1% in 2024, allowing 15% of day-to-day work decisions to be made autonomously.

Yet, AI agents are only as good as the data they have. They need connected data—both structured and unstructured—to understand user queries and make informed decisions. That’s where integration and APIs come in, building a solid foundation for these agents.

While 93% of IT leaders are either implementing or planning to implement AI agents within the next two years, they face significant integration challenges that hold back the full potential of these agents.

According to the latest MuleSoft Connectivity Benchmark Report, which surveyed more than 1,000 IT leaders globally, 95% struggle with data integration across systems. On average, only 29% of applications are connected, which really affects the accuracy and usefulness of AI agents.

The report found that, on average, enterprise organisations are using 897 applications, and those with AI agents are using even more—1,103 applications. 90% of IT leaders say data silos are creating business challenges.

The more applications and AI models there are, the harder it gets to integrate everything. Data silos make it even tougher, limiting agents’ access to the data they need and leading to less accurate and useful outputs.

Disconnected data also places major strain on IT resources. IT leaders are looking for ways to boost efficiency and productivity, but they expect their teams’ workload to increase in the next year. Balancing current capabilities with integrating AI agents across hundreds of unique applications while maintaining those systems, is a real challenge.

To unlock the full potential of AI agents, businesses need to align their integration and AI strategies. APIs and integration solutions can simplify and unify data infrastructure, allowing AI agents to access critical data and interact with existing systems and automations. This can significantly improve IT infrastructure, enable data sharing across teams, and integrate disparate systems.

Organisations that have successfully integrated their data and systems using APIs are reaping the rewards: increased productivity (49%), faster response to business needs (49%), and higher revenue generation (45%). On average, half of an organisation’s internal software assets and components are available for reuse, which means companies can leverage their existing investments, instead of starting from scratch.

The reliance on IT teams highlights the need for a clear automation strategy, along with robust governance and monitoring to ensure everything runs smoothly and securely.

A well-rounded automation strategy is crucial for integrating AI effectively, but many teams are still working on theirs. One key part of this strategy is making AI accessible to non-technical users, which is essential for broader adoption and creating a solid foundation for employees to build on, and this is where agents are changing the game.

Every company, team, and employee will soon have an agent. But how useful is a team of agents if they can’t interact with other systems or agents to coordinate and take action across the entire business? AI must have a smooth handoff to a human, and if that transition isn’t well-coordinated and seamless, any benefits are quickly undone

As AI, integration, automation, and API use continue to drive transformation and performance, organisations that invest in these technologies to harness unlimited digital labour are best placed to stay agile, efficient, and ultimately succeed.

MTN Nigeria has reaffirmed its commitment to nurturing Nigeria’s future Olympians through the MTN Champs athletics competition, which kicked off its third season today in Benin City, Edo State.

The telecommunications giant aims to revolutionise grassroots sports development in the country, providing a platform for young athletes to showcase their talents and potentially represent Nigeria on the global stage.

Osaze Ebueku, Senior Manager, Go-to-Market at MTN Nigeria, emphasised the company’s long-term vision for the initiative. “Our message from day one has been clear. We’re building future Olympians for Nigeria,” Ebueku stated. He highlighted that MTN Champs is not just about competition, but about changing lives and providing opportunities that many young athletes wouldn’t have had otherwise.

The impact of the program is already evident, with five standout athletes from MTN Champs representing Nigeria at the Paris 2024 Olympics. This achievement, coming just two years after the program’s inception in 2023, demonstrates the initiative’s effectiveness in fast-tracking talent from grassroots to global competitions.

Season 3 of MTN Champs has attracted 2,056 registered athletes to participate in Benin City alone, according to Bambo Akani, founder and CEO of Making of Champions, MTN’s partner in executing the championship. The competition will span three cities – Benin (March 13-15), Lagos (April 9-12), and Uyo for the Grand Final (April 30-May 3) – with a total of 7,000 athletes expected to participate across all locations.

Osaze Ebueku, Senior Manager, Go To Market at MTN, likened their approach to spotting “rough diamonds” and refining them into world champions. “We are on this journey for the long haul, working with our partners to elevate the standard of athletics in the country,” Ebueku explained.

The initiative has garnered support from state governments, with Edo State Governor Senator Monday Okpebholo approving the use of the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium and providing logistical support for the event. This collaboration underscores the growing recognition of MTN Champs’ potential to transform Nigeria’s athletic landscape.

As the competition unfolds, all eyes will be on the tracks of Benin, Lagos, and Uyo to witness the emergence of Nigeria’s next generation of athletic stars. MTN Champs continues to provide not just a competition, but a comprehensive platform for talent discovery, development, and the realisation of Olympic dreams for young Nigerian athletes.