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As Nigeria Sat-1 Lifespan Expires

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Nigeria made its debut in satellite space technology on September 27, 2003 when it launched Sat-1 aboard a Russian rocket. The launch, at Plesetsk cosmodrome was watched live on television by millions of enthusiastic Nigerians and foreigners at 10:12 a.m. The satellite, which cost 13 million US Dollars, was expected to monitor water resources, soil erosion, deforestation and disasters. It would also be used to survey oil pipelines, oil theft and smuggling activities. In specific terms, the satellite is expected to boost the current expansion in communication, agriculture, security surveillance and Government hopes to earn 200 million US Dollars annually from subscribing African nations. The extent to which the expiring Sat-1 was able to live up to this bidding is a subject for scrutiny.

Satellite technology allows for the gathering of spatial dataset, which is comprehensive, reliable and real-time.

The Federal Executive Council at its meeting of May 2001 approved the National Space Policy and Programme. The vision of the policy is to make Nigeria build indigenous competence in developing, designing and building appropriate hardware and software in space technology as an essential tool for its socio-economic development and enhancement of the quality of life of its people. Nigeria signed the contract for the building of the NigeriaSat-1 with Surrey Satellite Technology Limited (SSTL) of the

United Kingdom, on the 7th of November 2000.

The 98kg Microsatellite, which was jointly designed and built by a team of engineers from SSTL and Nigeria, was launched into 686 km Sun synchronous orbit. It was designed and built for a Disaster Monitoring Constellation (DMC) NigeriaSat-1 Configuration Launcher Selection.

The NigeriaSat-1 carries an imaging payload that provides satellites images of 32m resolution with a swath width of 600km using push broom scanning in three spectral bands (Red, Green and Near Infra Red) and 3-5days revisit and a daily revisit when in constellation with four (4) other satellites.

The spacecraft is equipped with two 0.5Gbyte Solid State Data Recorder (SSDR) for data storage during imaging and a main Receiver Frequency (RF) downlink at S band Frequencies with data rate of 8Mbps using store and forward communications. A 3.7m dish Mission Control Ground Station manned by Nigerians is installed in Abuja for the Telemetry, Telecontrol and Command of the spacecraft.

Image download from the spacecraft is processed from low-level data (bits and bytes) into full false colour images and made available to users in soft copy.

The contract for the building of the NigeriaSat-1 also included the training of 15 Nigerian Engineers/Scientist in a Know-How Technology Training (KHTT), fifteen months of intensive training in the design and building of all subsystems of the NigeriaSat-1 Spacecraft. The training would enable the engineers to design and build subsequent generations of satellites with very minimal supervision.

The DMC Consortium is a novel international partnership between, Nigeria, United Kingdom, Turkey, Algeria, China, Vietnam, and Thailand. Each of the DMC partners is to provide a spacecraft with almost the same configuration that will work in constellation.

The constellation would provide a global coverage and daily revisit with provision of real time data.

Nigeria Sat-1 lifespan expires in a few weeks and it is to this end that a team of the country’s scientist and engineers – 4 men and two women two weeks ago, jettisoned to London for training in preparation for the launch of Nigeria Sat-2 that will replace the expiring Sat-1.

Industry watchers that spoke to Nigeria CommunicationsWeek are worried about the benefits of Sat-1 that is precipitating the launch of Sat-2. While many are arguing that the preparation for the launch of Sat-2 is based on the merit of Sat-1, others are calling for holistic view of the benefit derived from Sat-1 and the extent to which it was able to meet its expectations. They cited several situations including that the satellite was expected to come to the rescue in monitoring of oil pipe line vandalization, oil theft and smuggling activities as well as deforestation and disasters. All these are still going on unabated for the five years the satellite had lasted.

More so, the absence of effective communications in time of disaster made Nigerian Communications Commission early this year to launch emergency communication centres in collaboration with disaster relief agencies and some state governments. This is one of the expectations of Nigeria Sat-1 which was not met.

If the country’s satellite they argued was effective in monitoring disaster, how could it have taken the country over five months to locate a missing plane that was eventually found by hunters in Cross River State close to the destination of the plane?

However, the country has signed a deal with British Satellite maker, Surrey Satellite Technology Limited (SSTL), the same company that built the first satellite, to build a second space satellite. A government official, Felix Ale, spokesman for Nigeria’s Space Research and Development Agency, said the deal between Nigeria and SSTL is expected to culminate in the launch of Nigeria SAT 2 by 2008, an earth observation satellite which has a seven-year lifespan.

SAT 2 could be deployed to aid agricultural and economic planning as well as help in disaster management, he said.

He stressed the importance of investment in space technology for effective planning to deal with developmental problems. According to a statement from the space agency, Nigeria hopes to expand its uses of space technology to include contributing to the management of its agricultural, water and human resources through use of satellite mapping when the second satellite is deployed. As the country prepares to make second journey to space for the launch of Nigeria Sat-2, it is the hope of Nigerians that efforts would be made to ensure that the country enjoys the benefit for which it is been launched, which is expected to translate to better planning and effective disaster management.


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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.

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Transcorp Power Reports N67.86Bn Revenue

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Transcorp Power Plc, also known as Transcorp Power, reported N67.86 billion in revenue for the quarter that concluded on March 31, 2024, on Friday.

Transcorp Power Reports N67.86Bn Revenue

Peter Ikenga

The amount represents a notable 223 percent increase from the N21.04 billion reported in the first quarter of 2023.

This was disclosed in the electricity generating company’s unaudited financial report, which was made available in Lagos, for the period ending March 31.

Transcorp Power reported that its Profit Before Tax (PBT) increased to N28.77 billion in the first quarter of 2024 from N3.29 billion in the same period the previous year, a 775 percent increase.

In the first quarter of 2024, the company’s Profit After Tax (PAT) increased by 665% year over year to N20.1 billion, from N2.6 billion in the same period the previous year.

The total assets of the electricity-generating subsidiary increased as well, rising from N223.3 billion in the same period of 2023 to N276.2 billion in the first quarter of 2024.

Mr. Evans Okpogoro, chief fnancial officer, Transcorp Power, commented on the financial highlights, stating that the company’s first quarter results for this year showed a cost to income ratio of 70% and a gross margin of 51%.

According to Okpogoro, the company also reported a gross margin of 37%, an expense-to-income ratio of 87%, a net profit margin of 13%, and a net profit margin of 30% as of the first quarter of 2023.

He stated that this highlighted the remarkable operational efficiency gains of the company.

According to him, Transcorp Power has continued to grow its revenue aggressively and consistently over the last five years.

“We expect that by the end of the year 2024, we will see a similar growth trajectory recorded between 2022 and 2023 financial year.

Also, Mr Peter Ikenga, managing director/chief executive officer (CEO), Transcorp Power, expressed the company’s delight to report further robust financial performance, despite sectoral challenges such as gas supply issues and macroeconomic challenges.

Ikenga said the ability of the electricity subsidiary to sustain growth amidst the environment shows the resilience of its business model and the efficient execution of its strategic initiatives.

As part of the Transcorp Group’s implementation of its integrated power strategy, the managing director went on to say that the company’s strong performance is evidence of its strategic focus and effective execution.

Strategically investing in the power, hospitality, and energy sectors, Transcorp Power Plc is an electricity-generating subsidiary of Transnational Corporation Plc (Transcorp Group), one of Africa’s top listed companies.


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PIN, Pan-Atlantic University Partner to Empower Journalists with Digital Rights and Inclusion Knowledge and Skills

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Paradigm Initiative (PIN) and the School of Media and Communication, Pan-Atlantic University (SMC, PAU) have sealed a partnership aimed at increasing knowledge and skills in reporting and responding to digital rights and inclusion issues in Africa.

This collaborative effort is aimed at equipping journalists with the expertise needed to effectively document and report on digital rights violations and advocate for inclusive digital spaces across Africa.

The partnership is part of PIN’s Digital Rights and Inclusion Media Programme (DRIMP) which encompasses media fellowships run collaboratively with academic institutions and sector experts. Through the programme, PIN partners with academic institutions and key digital rights experts to deliver capacity-building training sessions to early-career media practitioners and media students. DRIMP exposes relevant programme fellows to digital rights and inclusion, enhancing their ability to report and respond to any violations that may arise.

“Building a strong network of informed advocates and reporters is crucial for promoting and protecting digital rights in Africa and this collaboration marks a defining moment for the documentation of digital rights developments within Africa,” said Bridgette Ndlovu, PIN’s Partnerships and Engagements Officer. “Through this partnership with the School of Media and Communication, Pan-Atlantic University, we will empower media students to hold governments and the private sector accountable for upholding digital rights standards,” she said.

Commenting on behalf of SMC, PAU, Senior Lecturer at the School of Media and Communication, Dr. Nwachukwu Egbunike highlighted that the partnership is in line with SMC’s commitment to providing industry relevant skill sets to her students. The partnership will foster experiential learning, which is one of the cardinal teaching objectives of Pan-Atlantic University, Lagos. .

“We are excited to partner with Paradigm Initiative. Equipping media students with the knowledge and skills to report on digital rights issues is essential for building a more just and equitable digital space in Africa,” Dr. Egbunike added.

The collaboration comes at a time when rapid digitalisation and adoption of digital policies is gaining traction in Africa. Through the partnership, PIN will provide technical facilitation on digital rights topics which include: Surveillance, data privacy and digital legislation in Nigeria and Africa. Media students at Pan-Atlantic University will publish research papers on digital rights and inclusion. PIN will also offer internship opportunities to a maximum of two interns to recommended outstanding students who are part of the School of Media and Communication, Pan-Atlantic University programme per cohort. The Internship slots will allow student beneficiaries to learn from and contribute to PIN’s or any of its partners’ work.


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NELFUND Says UTME, NIN, BVN Mandatory for Student Loans

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Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has said that Nigerian students will need to present their Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination registration number (UTME); National Identification Number (NIN); and Bank Verification Number (BVN) to access student loans.

NELFUND Says UTME, NIN, BVN Mandatory for Student Loans

Mr Akintunde Sawyerr, managing director of NELFUND, assured that the body would ensure that those he called ‘ghost students’ would not have access to the soon-to-be-launched scheme.

The MD noted that NELFUND has put processes in place to ensure that all applicants and beneficiaries are traceable to prevent the loan from turning into a sort of national cake.

“We are using technology to run the system. The process of application is online and we are limiting human contact as much as possible. Once you have a Bank Verification Number, BVN and National Identification Number, NIN, which are parts of the requirements, we will have access to your data and all your accounts. This will also help us to know if you are qualified or not,” he explained.

He explained further that those who are already in school can apply for the loan at any level of their study, but must be at the beginning of each session. They would also have to provide their admission and matriculation details in addition to BVN and NIN.

According to the NELFUND boss, about 1.2 million Nigerian students in tertiary institutions and government-recognized skill acquisition centres would be among the first batch of beneficiaries. The number may increase as time goes on.

The programme, he noted, will be funded with one per cent of the total annual collectable revenue by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), which will amount to N194 billion if the agency meets its projection.

He explained that the loan would be paid in two segments. The first, he said, is the chargeable school fees which would be paid directly to the institutions while stipend would be paid into individual student’s account for day-to-day upkeep.

Mr. Sawyerr stated that the amount individual applicants will access will vary because of the course of study, school fees payable and geographical location of the institutions among others.

On the method of payback, he said, “You don’t start paying back the loan until two years after your National Youth Service Corps, NYSC Scheme and that is, if you have secured a job or business. A beneficiary can defer repayment if he has not secured a job, but if after due diligence, he defaulted, then he becomes a criminal and we will work with every agency that can help us get the money back, for example, EFCC, ICPC etc.”

 


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