Connect with us

General News

Lawmaker Lauds Microsoft, Supports Localising Technology-in-Education

Published

on

Mohammed Mahmud
Kindly share this post

Mohammed Mahmud, a Nigerian lawmaker has extolled Microsoft’s leadership role (both hardware and software ) in technological revolution in education.

Speaking to Nigeria CommunicationsWeek at the Inaugural BETT Middle East Leadership Forum & Expo, held in partnership with the Abu Dhabi Education Council at Intercontinental Abu Dhabi, from 6 to 7 April, said that he will work with other legislators to ensure adequate policies are in place to support the use of technology in teaching and learning in the country.

Bett is the global meeting place for the education technology community. Through a series of world class events, Bett’s mission is to promote the discovery of technology and knowledge to enhance lifelong learning. Bett embraces innovative solutions that inspire, in order to shape and improve the way people learn from the classroom to the boardroom.

Mahmud representing Agaie/Lapai Federal Constituency at the House of Representatives under the umbrella of the All Progressive Congress (APC), said, “Sincerely, the BETT 2016 conference was educative including the principal partner- Microsoft Corporation.

“What we learnt here are eye opening and impactful; as we return home (Nigeria), I will put up a team to assess how we can localize some of the things we learnt here. Truly and as advised by one of the speakers, we may not be able to do everything same time, but we will be doing ourselves a disservice if we don’t act now.

Advertisement

“The team will tropicalize what we have seen here; if there is a need for legislations, we will not hesitate to call the attention of other honourasble members of the House of Representatives to that effect.

Harnessing Relevant Contents to Boost Education in Nigeria
“Let me tell you here, categorically, the Federal Government of Nigeria has directed that data collected by several government agencies be put together in the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC’s) database. At the moment, people may not appreciate what that implies for education in the country, but as technology-in-education becomes more ubiquitous, such data will form very critical content for researches and learning. Whatever technology we are bringing into our education system has to be localized; in such way, our people will benefit from it,” the Honourable said.

Partnerships
He added that government, really, needs to partner with technology providers like Microsoft which has demonstrated enough passion for educational developments in the Middle East and Africa, to be specific.

He said, “Our problems are multifaceted such as lack of adequate power supply, internet connectivity and all that, but I am happy that Microsoft and other service providers are coming up with power efficient devices. At that point, government should ‘cash’ on this and integrate technology into the education system in the country”.

Appropriating More Budgets for Education
He said that education deserves adequate budgetary provision to meet the current needs and help set the youths on the path for global competitiveness.

Advertisement

“Well, it is not actually what I think as a person on appropriating adequate funds for education. The United Nations charter through the UNESCO had advised for specific minimum percentage for education in countries’ budgets. And the present government in Nigeria is giving education a priority compared to other budgets. We believe that subsequent budgets will even benefit education more.

Motivating The Teachers
“Technology does not operate in a vacuum, so to say. Therefore the place of teachers cannot be over emphasized. Through constant training and retraining, improved welfare packages, improved conditions of service and the provision of relevant technologies or gadgets to aid teaching and learning; these are critical in repositioning our education system. The teachers need to be brought to page with the technological advancements in the system. Honestly, any teacher who fails to adapt to technology should be shown the way out of the system”, he said.     

 

Kindly share this post

Nigeria CommunicationsWeek believes that technology makes life more exciting and helps improve the lives of people around Nigeria and indeed the world. So since 2007, we have devoted our energy to independent reportage of technology and how they affect lives.

Continue Reading
Advertisement
Comments

General News

Court Remands Akujobi, Ex Access over alleged Theft of N294.5m

Published

on

Kindly share this post

Chinonso Akujobi, former staff of Access Bank in Lagos, has been remanded in Ikoyi prison after she was arraigned on a five-count charge bordering on stealing to the tune of N294.5m.

Court Remands Akujobi, Ex Access over alleged Theft of N294.5m

Akujobi who is being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was arraigned before Justice I.O. Ijelu of the State High Court sitting in Ikeja, Lagos.

EFCC alleged that Akujobi stole the money between January and December 2025 while under the employment of Access Bank Plc.

As stated in one the charges, the defendant stole the money through unauthorized payments from the general ledger of Access Bank to her account number 0036668871 with the name Chinonso A., Uchechi A. and Florence A., thereby committing an offence of stealing, contrary to Section 280 and punishable under Section 287 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.

‎The defendant pleaded “not guilty“ to the charges when they were read to her.

Advertisement

‎In view of this, S.M.Yabo, prosecution counsel, asked the court for a trial date and also prayed for the remand of the defendant in a Correctional centre.

Justice Ijelu, thereafter, adjourned the case till October 8, 2026, for the hearing of the bail application and the commencement of trial.

The Judge also ordered that the defendant be remanded in the Ikoyi correctional Centre.

Kindly share this post
Continue Reading

General News

NSIB Faults Runway Identification, Reveals Cockpit Disagreement in Asaba Jet Incident

Published

on

Kindly share this post

The Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) says the flight captain of the VMO Aero aircraft that landed on a roadway near Asaba Airport in Delta State told investigators that the observer pilot mistakenly identified the paved road as the runway before touchdown.

The bureau disclosed this in a preliminary report released on Thursday on the June 10 incident, which prompted the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to ground the private jet.

The aircraft had seven people on board, including the pilot-in-command (PIC), second-in-command (SIC), an observer pilot, a cabin crew member and three passengers.

According to the report, the aircraft was cleared by Air Traffic Control (ATC) to approach Runway 11 at Asaba Airport after the crew requested a right orbit.

The crew initially discontinued the approach, executed a missed approach and repositioned for a second landing attempt.

Advertisement

NSIB said the crew reported that the aircraft’s navigation systems indicated it was correctly established on the published RNAV Runway 11 approach.

“The PIC and SIC reported that the observer pilot identified the paved surface ahead as the runway,” the report stated.

However, the observer pilot gave investigators a different version of events.

According to NSIB, he said the aircraft remained inside cloud until late in the approach and that the Ground Proximity Warning System (GPWS) repeatedly issued “TERRAIN, TERRAIN, PULL UP” alerts.

He also said he observed a telecommunications mast directly ahead and instructed the flight captain to abandon the approach and climb immediately.

Advertisement

The bureau further disclosed that a cabin crew member reported that one of the passengers became concerned after overhearing discussions among the pilots and asked whether one of them was undergoing training. The passenger was reportedly reassured that all three pilots on board were experienced captains.

NSIB said no abnormal events were reported in the cabin before touchdown.

The aircraft eventually landed at about 8:57 a.m. on an under-construction paved roadway near Asaba Airport instead of the designated runway.

The bureau said its investigation into the incident is ongoing, while the preliminary report highlights conflicting accounts among the cockpit crew over the circumstances that led to the erroneous landing.

Advertisement

Kindly share this post
Continue Reading

General News

EU warns Meta over addictive Facebook, Instagram designs, threatens fines

Published

on

Kindly share this post

European Union has warned Meta Platforms Inc. that it could face a significant financial penalty unless it changes what regulators describe as the “addictive design” features of Facebook and Instagram.

EU warns Meta over addictive Facebook, Instagram designs, threatens fines

The European Commission issued the warning in preliminary findings released on Friday, saying Meta had failed to sufficiently address risks posed by its platforms, particularly to children and vulnerable users.

The Commission said features such as infinite scrolling, personalised content recommendations and automatic video playback were designed in ways that encouraged excessive engagement with the platforms.

EU Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, Henna Virkkunen, said protecting the physical and mental well-being of European citizens should be a priority for social media companies.

The Commission said Meta should consider introducing design changes, including disabling autoplay and infinite scrolling by default, providing effective screen-time reminders and adjusting recommendation systems to reduce the focus on maximising user engagement.

Advertisement

The findings were issued under the European Union’s Digital Services Act (DSA), which sets obligations for major online platforms to address risks associated with their services.

Meta, however, rejected the Commission’s conclusions, saying it disagreed with the findings but would continue engaging with European regulators.

The company said it had already implemented measures aimed at protecting younger users, including Teen Accounts that allow parents to manage screen time limits and restrict access during night hours.

The EU said its investigation, which began in 2024, found that existing time-management tools on Facebook and Instagram could easily be bypassed, while parental controls required technical knowledge that limited their effectiveness.

Regulators also expressed concerns over children’s nighttime use of the platforms and the possibility that features such as Reels and Stories could encourage compulsive behaviour.

Advertisement

If the Commission’s preliminary findings are confirmed, Meta could face a fine of up to six per cent of its annual global revenue under the DSA.

The warning comes as the EU steps up efforts to strengthen online safety measures for children, with an expert panel established by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen expected to present recommendations on protecting minors online.

Several EU member states, including France, have also supported discussions on restricting social media access for children, following Australia’s decision to ban users under 16 from accessing social media platforms.

Meanwhile, the Commission is continuing a separate investigation into whether Meta’s recommendation algorithms create “rabbit hole” effects by directing users towards increasingly extreme content.

Advertisement

Kindly share this post
Continue Reading

Trending