Info Tech
Microsoft priorities Africa with new initiative
ABUJA: United States technology company, Microsoft Corporation says it is focusing on accelerating adoption of smart devices, empowering small and medium businesses, and up-leveling skills development to ignite African innovation for the continent.
Emmanuel Onyeje, country manager, Microsoft Nigeria, said this while making presentation during the commemoration of the company’s 20 years stewardship in Africa. The company says it is looking forward to the next 20 years, adding that it intends to explore new ways to link the growth of the business with initiatives that spur economic development. The firm introduced the ‘Microsoft 4Afrika Initiative’, which is designed to help improve Africa’s global competitiveness. As part of the project, according to Onyeje, Microsoft is investing N12 billion in Nigeria.
The goal, according to Microsoft is to empower African youth, entrepreneurs, developers, and business and civic leaders to turn great ideas into a reality that can help their community, their country, the continent, and beyond. According to Onyeje, by 2016, Microsoft projects to help place tens of millions of smart devices in the hands of African youths, bring one million African Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) online, up-skill 100,000 members of the Africa’s existing workforce, and help an additional 100,000 recent graduates develop skills for employ-ability 75 per cent of which Microsoft will help place in jobs. “Microsoft wants to invest in that promise which recognizes Africa’s promise.
“We want to empower African youths, entrepreneurs, developers and business and civic leaders to turn great ideas into reality that can help community, their country, the Continent and beyond. “The Initiative is built on the dual beliefs that technology can accelerate growth for Africa, and Africa can also accelerate technology for the world”. The Country Manager said that Microsoft was motivated to embark on the projects as part of its contributions to Africa’s transformation initiatives. He also announced that Microsoft has developed a new online hub through which Africa SMEs will have access to free, relevant products and services from Microsoft and other partners. “The hub will aggregate the available services which can help them expand their business locally, find new business opportunities outside their immediate geography and help increase their overall competitiveness,” he added.
As a welcome offer, he said that the company will provide free domain registration for the period of one year and free tools for qualifying SMEs interested in creating a professional web presence. “The world has recognized the promise of Africa, and Microsoft wants to invest in that promise. We want to empower African youth, entrepreneurs, developers and business and civic leaders to turn great ideas into a reality that can help their community, their country, the Continent, and beyond,” said Fernando de Sousa, general manager, Microsoft 4Afrika Initiative. The initiative, he went further is built on the dual beliefs that technology can accelerate growth for Africa, and Africa can also accelerate technology for the world.” Ernest Ndukwe, father of Nigeria modern telecom and Pat Utomi have expressed their delight in new Microsoft 4Afrika Initiative.
Ndukwe described the initiatives as timely and said it would deliver needed dividends to drive telecomm growth in the country. Ndukwe, the former executive vice chairman of the Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC) added that with youths as the targets, the initiative would propel increased attention on the telecomm value chain. “Microsoft should concentrate on the young people, because most initiatives advances made in relating to IT advancement have been with the young people.
In fact, the initiatives are timely, especially now government is very anxious in seeing that certain challenges that have not allowed the sector grow are faced squarely. “A lot have been said about issues concerning affordability, access, attractiveness and developing locally appealing contents. On the other hand, connectivity and access are critical in the Nigerian telecomm sector which led to questions on factors responsible for network congestions. “For all I know, the Federal government is determined to ensure the bottlenecks are removed. For instance, the Minister of Communication Technology has been meeting with State Governors on the issues of right of way (RoW) and some charges.
“There will be improvement in the sector before the end of 2012. So, Microsoft’s initiatives are right steps in the right direction,” Ndukwe said. On his part, Utomi said the programme makes a lot economic sense as they will accelerate development, particularly when the rural dwellers are incorporated into the projects. He maintained that technological education and programmes targeted at the SMEs must be encouraged to reverse the trend of opportunities and expertise exported from Nigeria to other countries. “For instance, if the Federal Government’s agenda of empowering framers with telephones prudently carried out, then we shall be talking about information dissemination to farmers; it is an economic empowerment initiative worth implementing. Now, Microsoft has shown that our challenges can be solved by our people. That is commendable,” he noted.
As a first critical step toward increasing the adoption of smart devices, Microsoft and Huawei are introducing the Huawei 4Afrika – a full functionality Windows Phone 8which will come pre-loaded with select applications designed for Africa. The phone will initially be available in Angola, Egypt, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria and South Africa later this month. The Huawei 4Afrika phone, which is the first in what will be a series of smart devices designed “4Afrika,” will be targeted toward university students, developers and first-time smart phone users to ensure they have affordable access to best-in-class technology to enable them to connect, collaborate, and access markets and opportunities online.
To improve technology access, Microsoft also announced the deployment of a pilot project with the Kenyan Ministry of Information and Communications and Kenyan Internet Service Provider, Indigo Telecom Ltd., to deliver low-cost, high-speed, wireless broadband and create new opportunities for commerce, education, healthcare, and delivery of government services across Kenya. The deployment is called “Mawingu,” which is Kiswahili for cloud. It is the first deployment of solar-powered base stations together with TV white spaces, a technology partially developed by Microsoft Research, to deliver high-speed Internet access to areas currently lacking even basic electricity.
In efforts at spicing up the 2023 ITREALMS E-Waste Dialogue, the management of ITREALMS Media has partnered with E-waste Producer Responsibility Organization of Nigeria (EPRON) membership organisations for a day-long collection scheme of small electronic waste on Friday, December 15, 2023.
The EPRON members aligning their partnership with 2023 ITREALMS E-Waste Dialogue are EL-AS Tech Enterprises Limited and WEEE Eco-Friendly.
ITREALMS’ day-long collection scheme is part of the commemoration of 2023 international E-Waste Day (IEWD) within the ITREALMS E-Waste Dialogue with the theme “You Can Recycle Anything with a plug, battery or cable” at Welcome Centre Hotels, International Airport Road, Lagos.
Revealing this collaboration, the Group Executive Editor, ITREALMS Media, the organisers of the 2023 ITREALMS E-Waste Dialogue, Sir. Remmy Nweke, urged mobile device enthusiasts to come along with their devices that have reached their end-of-life to the venue for proper disposition by professionals who would also be on grounds to address some topical issues.
The collection of small electronic wastes especially mobile phones and like-devices, would be carried out by EPRON member organisation, EL-AS Tech Enterprises Limited as facilitated by ITREALMS Media group as part of this year’s ITREALMS E-Waste Dialogue on Friday, December 15, he added.
He disclosed that the exercise would commence at Welcome Centre Hotel by 9am till close of work hours the same day.
Nweke pointed out that the collection of small e-waste items would include mobile phones, pointers mouse, earpieces, rechargeable torches, phone chargers, to name a few.
Further, he said, that this initiative has become time-serving because some people may have missed any other opportunity before now for the year-long campaign, hence this awareness on e-Waste has to be continuous, “ITREALMS came up with this scheme.”
Nweke beckoned on Nigerians, especially mobile phone users, to leverage the opportunity in disposing of their mobile devices they no longer use, of course in exchange for a voucher or gift item.
In her reaction to this year’s day-long small waste collection, EPRON Executive Secretary, Mrs. Ibukun Faluyi, described the initiative as commendable, expressing confidence it would intensify the collection of end-of-life devices for proper disposition.
Mrs. Faluyi, also urged Nigerians to take advantage of this day-long collection of small wastes courtesy of ITREALMS Media.
Recalling for instance that in October 2022, EPRON had partnered SLOT alongside some UN agencies for collection of small e-waste items in Lagos, including the United Nations Information Centres (UNIC), United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), International Labour Organisation (ILO), Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) and Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA).
This is even as the Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) Dr. Aminu Maida and Director-General, National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA), Prof. Aliyu Jauro, would both lead speakers at the 2023 ITREALMS E-Waste Dialogue slated for this Friday, December 15, in Lagos.
Today, September 12, the tech corporation Apple will introduce the iPhone 15, their newest iPhone model.
According to a Forbes story, this model, which will be introduced at the company’s “Wanderlust” event in Cupertino, California, will be available in four variations: the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro, and iPhone 15 Pro Max.
Here are five things you should know about the new iPhone 15 model.
1. The new model is made of titaniu, not stainless steel as some other Apple smartphone models, Senior research analyst at DIGITIMES, Luke Lin reports.
2. The Pro Max model will feature double the optical zoom on the iPhone 14 as it comes with a newly-introduced ‘periscope lens upgrade, performing 5-6x optical zoom.’
3. The Pro models will carry an A17 bionic chip expected to make it perform faster.
4. The iPhone 15 model will feature a USB-C charging port, the same port featured on some Android phone models.
5. Due to its titanium shell, the new model is anticipated to be more expensive to purchase. The following is the speculated price list, as reported by Forbes:
The iPhone 15 starts at $799, the iPhone 15 Plus at $899, the iPhone 15 Pro at $1,099 ($100 increase), and the iPhone 15 Pro Max at $1,299 ($200 increase).
In an effort to reduce the exorbitant cost of Premium Motor Spirit, better known as petrol, the Infrastructure Bank Plc announced its collaboration with FEMADEC Group on Monday to offer 500 buses powered by autogas (Compressed Natural Gas).
Partners in the agreement claimed that the project was created to provide citizens with dependable, affordable, and environmentally friendly travel options, taking into account the negative effects of the nationwide increase in PMS costs.
Under Decree No. 51 of the Federal Republic of Nigeria’s 1992 Constitution, the Infrastructure Bank, originally known as the Urban Development Bank of Nigeria Plc, was founded in 1992 to promote the quick development of infrastructure throughout the nation.
In a statement issued in Abuja on its partnership with FEMADEC, the bank said, “The preliminary offer extended by TIB lays a solid foundation for the expansion of FEMADEC Group’s CNG bus fleet.
“With plans to introduce 500 CNG buses within the next five years, commencing with an initial batch of 50 buses in the forthcoming year, this proposal stands poised to instigate significant change.
“The acceptance of this proposition by FEMADEC Group, notably championed by Fola Akinnola, the Group Chief Executive Officer, is a testament to their zeal and dedication to this alliance.”
The bank described the partnership as a “pivotal endeavour that is primed to redefine Nigeria’s public transportation landscape, offering dependable, cost-effective, and ecologically conscious travel alternatives for citizens, while harmonising with the nation’s broader sustainability ambitions.”
“This partnership represents a remarkable stride towards a more ecologically aware future for Nigeria’s transportation sector, highlighting the shared commitment of both TIB and FEMADEC Group to sustainable advancement and progress.”
It said FEMADEC Group’s strides in operating Compressed Natural Gas buses, including the existing fleet of 20 CNG buses under LAMATA, underscored their unwavering dedication to ecologically sound solutions, a commitment predating the fuel subsidy removal.
“Their leadership within the CNG value chain is undeniable, and the new alliance with TIB underscores their foresight.
“This partnership seamlessly aligns with TIB’s sustainability objectives, echoing their resolute endorsement of the government’s net-zero and climate change agenda.
“The bank’s aspiration to champion Nigeria’s infrastructure progress is evident in its endorsement of pivotal initiatives like this, yielding expansive positive impacts on both the environment and society,” the bank stated.
The bank added that it would continue to make a significant contribution to the country’s growth as a leading financial institution committed to advancing effective and long-lasting infrastructure projects.
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