General News
Affordable Smartphones, Tablets Answer to Broadband Penetration
Two recent polls by independent international ICT agencies have confirmed long held views that Nigerians are very resilient and are moving towards meeting global competitiveness inspite of government’s indifference towards upgrading the nation’s poor IT infrastructure. A survey by Zoomsphere shows that South Africa, Nigeria and Egypt top Africa’s LinkedIn subscription put at about 5.7 million. Statistics from the agency shows that there are lots of opportunities for growth for LinkedIn in the continent. LinkedIn statistics put figures from the countries on the professional social networking site as South Africa 1, 700, 672, Nigeria 656, 528 and Egypt 543, 699. Perhaps viewed against the backdrop of factors like literacy level and infrastructure adequacy, one would surmise that Nigeria was making giant strides in citizen education. At the 2011 Microsoft’s global Imagine Cup competition, Nigeria didn’t fare as much as Egypt and that despite the latter’s social upheaval that led to deposition of long term president Hosni Mubarak. In an earlier survey by Alexa.com, Egypt, South Africa and Nigeria also topped the continent’s facebook user account. Egypt registered 9 million users on the social networking site which continues to be a favourite in Africa. South Africa ranks second with 4.8 million users and Nigeria 4.3 million. But it is evident that with the mobile broadband explosion in the country, it is just a matter of time before Nigeria overtakes both nations using its huge population advantage as evidence in the mobile phone revolution. According to Alexa.com 3.2 million Users in these three countries were added to their combined 18.1 million in the last six months alone. Nigeria faces huge infrastructure challenge including public power supply, broadband penetration amongst others. Despite the huge mobile phone customers base put at over 110 million and the landing of two submarine fibre optic cables to the country in 2010, Nigeria still lacks in critical telecom infrastructure development in much of the country. For example, the two privately owned undersea cables, MainOne and Glo1 systems are only effective in Lagos commercially. “There has to be a government assistance to take the fibre up country from Lagos. We have landed the fibre in the shores of Lagos, but it will cost huge financial investment to take this infrastructure to the hinterlands,” said Ms. Funke Opeke, CEO of MainOne. Sunil Mittal, chairman and managing director of Bharti Airtel noted that for countries in sub-Saharan Africa like Nigeria, the answer lies with cheap tablets to spur adoption of the fast evolving technological trends. Mittal who spoke at last weeks’ mobile world congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Spain advocated that OEMs should focus on bringing down cost of tablets and smartphones to enable access in emerging markets like Africa and India. The Airtel chief recommended retain tablet price range of about $50 to give these markets access. He was speaking from a position of customer point of view from a poor market economy, not necessarily as an operator who aims for the profit alone. Both the India sub-continent and sub-Saharan Africa have a common bond of poverty and Mittal understands. While stating that smartphone market penetration in India accounts for about five per cent, he lamented that the need for affordable access to mobile broadband was even more pressing in Africa than on the sub continent. He believes cheap and affordable devices would increase mobile penetration and capacity building in both markets. “We are seeing tremendous uplift in the data usage in the developing world. The problem is on the devices side. We need to be able to build very affordable smartphones.” “The cost of operations in Africa is very high. We can’t bring the tariffs down yet. In India the first dollar goes on phone and then the next goes on telephony. In Africa, any savings on telephony will go into food.” The high point of Mittal’s speech was his recognition of the fact that Africa lacks the critical transformational middle class. India, he stated has a subsidized middle class which takes the heat off the wealthy. This contrasts with Africa where you are either very poor or wealthy! The advantage of mobile broadband was quite evidenced in the 2011 Arab Spring revolutions that witnessed age hold political dynasties dethroned in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya. Nigeria had a taste of this new media ascendency last January when masses of people converged on major streets across the nation in carnival moods and shutting down the economy over a period of seven days following government’s announcement of increase in fuel pomp prices. The government was forced to backpedal midway when it became apparent the people would precede to totally shutdown the entire petroleum production process if it did not soft pedal. The outcome was hailed as victory for people’s power and triumph of democracy. But more than democracy and people’ power, what took place in Nigeria last January was a triumph of the emerging mobile broadband evolution in Nigeria. Due to the dearth of critical telecom infrastructure in the country, much of the acclaimed 40 million internet subscriptions are mobile driven. And here the call for cheaper tablets and smartphones becomes even more critical. The Nigerian PC OEMs have been challenged by no other than the Qualcomm managing director for West Africa, Alex Dadson to begin the process of producing tablets locally. He believes local production of tablets would drive down cost, generate employment and fast track the learning process in the education sector. Again, nobody talks about what government could do because the government isn’t just responsive to the people it claims to govern.
General News
Coscharis Technologies, Huawei Unveil IdeaHub S3 Interactive Board in Nigeria

Coscharis Technologies Limited, a leading Information Technology distribution company in the Sub-Saharan African market, in collaboration with Huawei, has officially launched the innovative Huawei IdeaHub S3 interactive board into the Nigerian market.

The unveiling ceremony, which attracted top industry stakeholders, partners, and technology enthusiasts, was held at the prestigious Federal Palace Hotel, Lagos, in the heart of Nigeria’s commercial hub.
Speaking at the event, the Managing Director of Coscharis Technologies Limited, Dr. Sunday Mukoro, appreciated guests for attending and reaffirmed the company’s commitment to introducing cutting-edge technologies into the Nigerian market to accelerate the country’s technological advancement.
Dr. Mukoro described the Huawei IdeaHub S3 as a next-generation smart collaboration device equipped with advanced features designed to enhance productivity, communication, and digital collaboration across businesses, educational institutions, and organizations.
To further excite participants at the launch, he announced a special one-off 20 percent discount for early bird orders placed during the event.
Representing Huawei, Charles Chen, Huawei Nigeria eKit Manager, reiterated Huawei’s dedication to delivering world-class technology solutions tailored to modern workplace and learning environments. He emphasized that the IdeaHub S3 reflects Huawei’s continuous innovation in smart office and collaborative technologies.
The Huawei IdeaHub S3 is available in 65-inch, 75-inch, and 86-inch variants and comes loaded with several advanced features, including ergonomic design, ultra-low latency performance, 4K dual-lens camera with 5x zoom capability, and superior image quality with zero colour cast technology.
Other notable features include a 24-microphone array with up to 15-meter sound pickup range, high-fidelity stereo sound system, 4K soft light screen, intelligent tracking with auto-crop view, Acoustic Baffle 2.0 technology, ultrasonic projection, app multiplier functionality, and enhanced BYOM/BYOD collaboration capabilities.
The event climaxed with the formal unveiling of the Huawei IdeaHub S3, led by Dr. Sunday Mukoro alongside executives from Huawei and the Coscharis Huawei team, marking another milestone in the advancement of smart collaborative technology solutions in Nigeria
General News
Nigeria is World Bank’s Third-Largest Borrower with $18.5Bn – IDA

Nigeria has retained its position as the third-largest borrower from the International Development Association (IDA), the concessional lending arm of the World Bank, despite a slight decline in its debt exposure in the first quarter of 2026.

According to the IDA’s March 2026 financial statements, Nigeria’s exposure stood at $18.5 billion as of March 31, 2026, down marginally from $18.7 billion recorded at the end of December 2025.
The $200 million decline represents a 1.1 per cent reduction over the three-month period.
However, on a year-on-year basis, Nigeria’s debt exposure increased significantly by $1.2 billion, or 6.9 per cent, from $17.3 billion recorded in March 2025.
The latest ranking places Nigeria behind Bangladesh and Pakistan among the World Bank’s largest IDA borrowers.
Data from the report showed that Bangladesh remained the largest borrower with an exposure of $22.7 billion, followed by Pakistan with $19.2 billion, while Nigeria ranked third with $18.5 billion.
Other major African borrowers include Ethiopia with $14.4 billion, Tanzania with $14.3 billion, and Kenya with $13.2 billion in outstanding exposure.
The report also revealed that the IDA’s total loans outstanding stood at $230.8 billion as of March 31, 2026, slightly below the $231.1 billion recorded at the end of December 2025, reflecting a mild moderation in the institution’s lending portfolio.
According to the IDA, loans classified under non-accrual status represented only 0.4 per cent of the total portfolio, while provisions for potential loan losses amounted to $6.3 billion, equivalent to about 2.0 per cent of underlying exposures.
Nigeria’s exposure accounted for roughly eight per cent of the IDA’s total loan portfolio and approximately 13.3 per cent of the combined exposure represented by the institution’s ten largest borrowing countries.
The IDA noted that its ten largest country exposures collectively accounted for about 60 per cent of total portfolio exposure as of March 2026, highlighting the concentration of concessional lending among a relatively small number of developing economies.
Despite the slight quarter-on-quarter decline, Nigeria’s debt profile with the World Bank continues to trend upward over the longer term.
The report showed that Nigeria’s exposure rose from $17.3 billion in March 2025 to $18.5 billion in March 2026, underscoring the country’s increasing reliance on concessional financing to support development priorities and economic reforms.
Similarly, Ethiopia’s exposure increased from $13.2 billion to $14.4 billion over the same period, while Tanzania’s exposure rose from $12.6 billion to $14.3 billion.
Bangladesh’s debt exposure climbed from $21.2 billion to $22.7 billion, while Pakistan’s increased from $18.3 billion to $19.2 billion.
Ghana also recorded an increase from $7.1 billion to $7.4 billion.
Nigeria’s position among the top borrowers reflects the scale of its infrastructure, social investment, and reform financing needs under the World Bank’s concessional lending framework.
The Federal Government is also currently engaging the World Bank for additional financing support.
General News
NCAA Suspends ‘No Pay, No Service’ Policy Against Indebted Airlines

Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority has suspended plans to enforce its proposed “no pay, no service” policy against domestic airlines owing statutory charges, following consultations with operators and concerns over rising operational costs in the aviation sector.

Director-General of Civil Aviation, Chris Najomo, said the decision followed a review of prevailing challenges facing airlines, particularly the rising cost of Jet A1 aviation fuel.
The NCAA had earlier issued a memo on May 22 placing at least 11 domestic carriers on a “no pay, no service” list over outstanding debts owed to aviation agencies.
Affected airlines reportedly included Air Peace, Ibom Air, Overland Airways, Arik Air, United Nigeria Airlines, Max Air and Caverton Helicopters.
Industry sources said airlines immediately began discussions with the regulator after the directive was announced, leading to the temporary suspension of enforcement.
The NCAA clarified that the suspension did not amount to a cancellation or waiver of the debts, adding that all affected airlines remained responsible for settling their statutory obligations.
According to the authority, engagements with operators would continue to ensure compliance while avoiding disruptions to flight operations and passenger services.
The regulator also referenced earlier intervention measures approved by President Bola Tinubu, including a 30 per cent discount on outstanding charges owed by domestic airlines to aviation agencies.
The measure, it said, was introduced to cushion the impact of high aviation fuel costs and stabilise the sector.
The NCAA defended the five per cent Ticket and Cargo Sales Charge imposed on airlines, describing it as a statutory levy established under Nigeria’s Civil Aviation Act.
“The charge is not part of airline revenue or operating profit and should not be treated as such,” the authority stated.
It added that the agency operates largely on a cost-recovery basis and depends on remittances from operators to sustain regulatory oversight and aviation safety functions.
According to the NCAA, suspending the enforcement action was intended to balance regulatory compliance with the need to maintain operational stability in the aviation industry.
The authority reaffirmed its commitment to recovering all outstanding debts while supporting the long-term sustainability of domestic airline operations.
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