Telecom
Danbatta to Spotlight Consumer Protection on World Consumer Rights Day 2021
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has concluded plans to organise a special world press conference to mark this year’s edition of the World Consumer Rights Day (WCRD) in line with its consumer centric regulatory approach.
Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, executive vice chairman of the Commission, will address the world press conference virtually on March 15, 2021 from the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja.
This year’s WCRD global theme, “Tackling Plastic Pollution”, is aimed at raising awareness and engaging consumers globally to adopt and promote more sustainable practices which will also focus on the central role that consumer advocates, governments and businesses can play in tackling the global plastic pollution crisis.
Dr. Ikechukwu Adinde, director, Public Affairs, Nigerian Communications Commission, in a statement on Thursday, said that the EVC will use the world press conference to present NCC’s initiatives on electronic waste (e-waste) management and other hazards in the country.
According to him, “During the press conference, he will also spotlight the Commission’s initiatives in ensuring accessible, affordable, and available telecoms services to Nigerian telecom consumers while delving into other initiatives through which the Commission protects, informs, and empowers the consumers.
“The highlight of the press conference will be the launching of the NCC Consumer Handbook, a document which provides salient information on the rights and privileges of the consumers and how the consumer can seek redress when their rights are violated by service providers or any stakeholder in the ecosystem”.
It would be recalled that the Commission declared 2017 as the ‘Year of the Consumer’ to underscore its focus on the primary place of subscribers of telecommunications services in its regulatory agenda. The year was dedicated to spotlight the consumer not only as a key stakeholder but indeed the most important figure in the telecommunications ecosystem.
With over 200 million mobile voice subscribers and over 150 million Internet users in the country, the Commission has, over the years, demonstrated its commitment towards protecting telecom consumers, making it one of the most consumer-centric public institutions in the country.
The WCRD is celebrated on March 15 every year with the aim of creating global awareness on consumer rights and needs.
The WCRD was first celebrated in 1983 and has become an important annual occasion for mobilising citizen actions and solidarity within the international consumer movement.
The Day provides an opportunity to promote the basic rights of all consumers, demand that those rights are respected, and protect them against market abuses and social injustices.
In the wake of increasing geopolitical tension, Cassava Technologies has unveiled its National Sovereign Cloud offering for African governments.
The solution, the company claims, will help the continent’s governments ensure data is kept on infrastructure that remains under local legal and operational jurisdiction.
According to the official announcement, made yesterday, the solution provides “secure, locally-governed digital infrastructure that enables the deployment of AI-enabled public services”.
The overarching solution encompasses cloud, cyber security, AI computing infrastructure, as well as local language AI models and skills support for governments.
The announcement comes amid increasing uncertainty over the hosting of sensitive national data on cloud services operated by foreign hyperscalers, which are subject to legal frameworks, such as the U.S. CLOUD Act. The CLOUD Act opens the door to allow American authorities to access data stored on the servers of US hyperscalers, wherever those servers are physically located.
Cassava has claimed separately that currently, “approximately 33% to 45% of the world’s data is hosted in the USA”.
The company added: “A sovereign cloud reduces exposure to extraterritorial laws, improves cyber resilience, and ensures that model weights and training data for public AI remain under national custody.”
The Africa Data Centres Association’s 2026 Economic Report states that “data sovereignty has evolved from a legal aspiration into a strategic policy lever”.
Ahmed El Beheiry, Group COO and Group Chief Technology and AI Officer, Cassava Technologies said: “Across Africa, governments are accelerating their digital transformation agendas and are increasingly focused on ensuring that data and digital infrastructure remain secure and sovereign.”
Announced at the Mobile Word Congress in Barcelona, this week, the Sovereign Cloud offering launch accompanied the launch of Cassava’s Cloud Partner programme.
The partner programme targets mobile network operators and system integrators across Africa to resell and distribute AI, cloud, and other digital services using Cassava’s infrastructure and technology platforms.
El Beheiry added: “We are expanding Africa’s sovereign AI ecosystem to build solutions that address the continent’s unique challenges while creating new opportunities for growth and digital inclusion.”
The programme offers partners access to NVIDIA Cloud Partner solutions, Cassava’s AI Factory, its own native AI solutions and its AI Multi-Model Exchange, which supports both Anthropic’s Claude and Google’s Gemini models.
Mazen Mroue, a non-executive director at MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, has resigned effective February 27, 2026, to prioritise other responsibilities within the MTN Group, the company announced in a Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) filing.
MTN Nigeria
The notice, signed by company secretary Uto Ukpanah, stated: “This is to enable Mr. Mroue to focus on other priorities within MTN Group Limited. The Board wishes to express its appreciation to Mr. Mroue for his immense service to MTN Nigeria and wishes him success in his future endeavours.”
Mroue joined MTN Nigeria’s board on June 1, 2022, bringing over 28 years of telecom experience. A veteran MTN executive, he previously served as CEO of MTN Uganda and MTN Liberia, non-executive director at MTN Cyprus, and held leadership roles at MTN Ghana.
Since February 2022, he has been MTN Group’s Chief Technology and Information Officer, overseeing technology strategy and governance. Earlier, as MTN Nigeria’s COO from August 2018 to January 2022, he also sat on the MTN Nigeria Foundation board.
The exit follows MTN Nigeria’s stellar 2025 results, posting a ₦1.70 trillion profit before tax—reversing a ₦550.3 billion loss in 2024 driven by forex woes—marking one of the telco’s strongest rebounds.
Google has rolled out support for Yorùbá and Hausa languages in its AI-powered Search features—AI Overviews and AI Mode—enabling millions of Nigerians to get quick answers, summaries, and conversational web exploration in their mother tongues.
The update forms part of Google’s push to cover 13 African languages, including Afrikaans, Akan, Amharic, Kinyarwanda, Afaan Oromoo, Somali, Sesotho, Kiswahili, Setswana, Wolof, and isiZulu, selected based on high search activity across the continent.
Now, a Kano student can ask complex questions in Hausa, while an Ibadan trader seeks business tips in Yorùbá—both receiving culturally nuanced AI responses via text or voice on Android, iOS, or web.
Taiwo Kola-Ogunlade, Google’s West Africa Communications Manager, said: “Building truly global Search requires nuanced local understanding. With Gemini-powered AI, we’ve made advanced capabilities relevant in Yorùbá and Hausa, so Nigerians converse naturally with Search in their mother tongues.”
To use: Open the Google app, tap AI Mode, and query in Hausa or Yorùbá for personalised guidance—breaking language barriers and making technology reflect Nigeria’s diverse identity.
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