Telecom
TECNO Mobile Reassures of Improved Innovative Technologies

Globally, successful brands share one thing in common-high quality. It appears TECNO Mobile is not left out in the universal trend of unique brand development, as it reassures customers in Africa of high quality product offerings, affordability and improvements.
TECNO Mobile offerings in mobile voice and data technologies which include: smart phones, tablets and feature phones ranges enjoy huge popularity and adoption in Africa owing to its unique offering of Dual-SIM enabled mobile devices at a time it barely controlled less than 1% of the total market share in mobile devices original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) with shops in African.
TECNO Mobile known for price friendly products is not left out in the universal trend of unique brand development, high quality product offerings, affordability and improvement.
Sharing the TECNO’s success stories during a press conference in Lagos, Arif Chowdhury, vice president, TECNO Group told Technology Journalists that their success story was driven by innovative technology.
According to him, TECNO Mobile offerings in mobile voice and data technologies including smart phones, tablets and feature phones ranges enjoy huge popularity and adoption in Africa.
Having moved its Research and development (R&D) headquarters to Shanghai, he further informed their success story could be attributed to strong team of French designers committed to deliver innovative, high functional, competitive and stylish products to the African market.
Commending the Standard Organization of Nigeria, (SON) on its recent crack down on substandard mobile products in the market, he said with optimism that TECNO believes in Africa having achieved success in the region.
Acknowledging that majority of cheap phones in the Nigeria market are good, he warned on the dangers of counterfeit phones that are dangerous to human health as a result of high radiation.
Chowdhury also said, “TECNO Mobile has grown with Africa having consolidated on its position as a major mobile OEMs, delivering unique insight-based mobile technology service to African consumers.
“Africa is our sole market and we will treat her right . We will continue to also build lasting value in the Africa communities by driving initiatives such as the Local apps development challenge in partnership with sister company, Afmobi.
“Africa was willing to welcome our brand when Nokia and Samsung, among other brands were dominating the market.
“ We offered affordability, originality and aspiration in our range of products and such , customer base began to swell.
“By 2009, TECNO Mobile had become an accepted and robust competitor with low-end mobile devices that offered value at affordable rates.
Meeting African market needs
“The African market has always had huge purchasing potential. We understood the peculiar needs of the African market space. Our product is one of such brand that understand Africa’s unique infrastructural challenges. We tailored our products to meet this significant market.
“ In 2006 when TECNO Mobile entered the African Mobile, there were existing top global brands already operating within the African space from the likes of Nokia, Samsung, Alcatel, Motorola, among others.
“However, none of these global brands factored in the power challenges and the fairly nascent Telecos infrastructural development across the continent in design of their mobile products. Many of the mobile voice operators at the time had infrastructure that struggled to deliver quality voice connections across a wide range, thus the advent of TECNO Mobile Dual-SIM products” Chowdhury explained”.
Why Dual SIM
He said that TECNO Mobile Dual-SIM philosophy for Africa was hinged on the fact that telecommunications infrastructure for land lines service was under developed and cannot meet Africa’s need for voice service.
Given the fact that many African consumers have the need for to hold more than one SIM card, TECNO, he said introduced the Dual-SIM technology to market with price-friendly.
Telecom
Telecoms Services Resume in Kogi State as Telcos, Govt Resolve Dispute

Telecommunications services disrupted in Kogi State have resumed following a resolution of the dispute between MTN Nigeria and the state government, the Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) has said.
Gbenga Adebayo, chairman of ALTON, told TVC News that the issues that led to the shutdown of telecom masts in the state, primarily affecting MTN, had been addressed, paving the way for service restoration.
TVC News earlier reported that businessmen and women were counting their losses as they suffered the impact of a shut down of telecommunication service in Kogi State
Over the past two weeks, telecoms connectivity had been erratic, with competing brands experiencing glitches, particularly in the Lokoja metropolis.
The State government suspended the operations of some telecom services citing unpaid taxes and fibre-related dues.
The shutdown stemmed from a compliance dispute between MTN and the Kogi State Utility Infrastructure Management and Compliance Agency, which accused the telecom giant of violating operational rules and under-declaring the extent of its optic fibre network coverage in the state.
Telecom
Banks Settle ₦160Bn USSD Debt to Telcos, Ending Five-Year Dispute

The protracted Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) debt misunderstanding between the Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) and telecommunications operators appears to have been resolved.
This was confirmed by the Chief Executive Officer of MTN Nigeria, Karl Toriola, Thursday, March 1, when he appeared on Arise TV to speak on the firm’s first-quarter 2025 result, where the telecommunications company reported over N1 trillion in revenue earnings.
Recall that the USSD debt had been a major issue between the DMBs and telcos and had lasted for about five years.
In the third quarter of 2024, the telcos had threatened to withdraw their service over the lingering debt, which was around N200 billion at the time. This led to the swift intervention of the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), and an agreement was reached on payment.
As of November 2024, the NCC put the debt at N160 billion. However, earlier this year, when it appeared the banks were not forthcoming with payments, the NCC directed the telcos to withdraw the USSD services from debt-owning DMBs, where about 18 banks were listed.
This directive prompted the banks to look inward and start to comply with an earlier circular signed by the CBN and NCC, which articulated the payment patterns for the debt.
Speaking, on Arise TV this morning, May 1, Toriola confirmed that the matter has been fully resolved and that banks have made payments.
“I can confirm that the matter has been fully resolved. We have received payments in full. Special thanks to the CBN, NCC, the banks, and other stakeholders that intervened in the matter,” the MTN CEO stated.
Telecom
Sterling Bank Introduces AlwaysOn, Offering Nigerians Up to ₦1 Million Monthly

Sterling Bank, Leading commercial bank and Africa’s most agile company has announced the introduction of AlwaysOn by Sterling, a bold new feature on its OneBank platform that will give eligible customers up to ₦1 million extra every month -even when their account balances are running low.
Launched on Workers’ Day 2025, the initiative is part of an ongoing movement to remove structural barriers to financial freedom and empower everyday Nigerians to move boldly, even in uncertain times.
AlwaysOn is a specialised, invitation-only feature for customers who maintain an active OneBank account for a while. It provides an advance to settle bills or make payments without delays, or any of the friction associated with traditional credit systems.
“This is not just about funds,” said Abubakar Suleiman, Chief Executive Officer of Sterling Bank. “It’s about freedom and dignity. It’s about backing our customers with the trust and tools to act boldly when life demands it.”
Suleiman emphasised that the new feature is not a product, it’s a logical shift in how the bank supports its customers.
“We’re building a financial ecosystem designed for momentum -for people with grit, urgency, and dreams too big to wait. If you’ve banked with us, you’ve earned our confidence. Now you’ll have our backing to match,” added Suleiman.
The introduction of AlwaysOn marks the next chapter in Sterling’s growing movement to create a fairer and more responsive financial system. It follows the Zero Transfer Fees initiative in April, which returned an estimated ₦13 billion to Nigerians by eliminating transfer charges across the OneBank platform. It also builds on Sterling’s Free Bus Ride initiative, which helped commuters get home from work for free during a time of intense economic pressure.
Together, these efforts reflect the bank’s bold, people-first approach to customer impact, now made possible by its adoption of SeaBaas, Nigeria’s first indigenous core banking platform.
“We’re not the kind of bank that stands on the sidelines while Nigerians hustle,” said Obinna Ukachukwu, Growth Executive for Retail and Consumer Banking. “We removed the fees that slowed them down. Now we’re giving Nigerians the financial freedom to seize opportunity when it shows up. We’re on the pitch with them.”
Sterling’s actions have sparked widespread public support and national recognition as they have continued to push the boundaries of what corporate citizenship can mean to everyday Nigerians.
Notable icons from various fields have canvassed their support and praised the bank’s stance in redefining financial services, inspiring other institutions to follow suit.
Nigerians are encouraged to apply to join the waitlist for the scheme when it goes live in later this month and ultimately, eligibility for up to N1M extra in relief advances.
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