E-Business
Cloud Mobility,Others to Shape ICT in 2014 – Akano
Tim Akano, Chief Executive Officer, New Horizons Nigeria over the weekend release his ICT predictions for 2014, chike onwuegbuchi was there and captured highlight of the predictions.
In 2014, we are going to divide our submission into 4 parts: One, Seven Hottest skills that will prosper ICT professionals; two, seven biggest trends in ICT that will determine which organization survives, thrives or dies in 2014.
Three, seven most dangerous ICT Threats and four; How Nigeria and Nigerians can benefit from all of this. Some of the surveys conducted by IDC, Gartner, IDG, CIO magazine are quite useful as a guide for investors this year to know what is on the horizon.
Meanwhile in 2014, issues like e-waste will continue to dominate the technology discussion as this is predicted to grow by 33% in the next 3 years.( source: IDG) New Start-Ups will benefit from re-cycling businesses of telephone handsets, Laptops and PCs. Another issue is the mobile banking users. This is expected to grow by 100% this year.
There will be new ways of watching Televisions. Another area of opportunities for entrepreneurs with foresight is MOBILE INSURANCE. Since we are now married to our gadgets, this will be a new source of investment for the Insurers.
ICT spending will grow by about 5% in the ‘’traditional market ‘’ of Europe and America while in the emerging markets , double digit growth is being expected to be led by China at 13%( source: idc), Adoption of CYBER INSURANCE will witness double digit growth in 2014 in Europe and North America where awareness of Cyber threats is huge.
In addition, this is a year of what I call ‘’TECHNOLOGY OVER FLOW’’ i.e. hardware will do more things than hitherto because it is now more intelligent and smarter. We will see new touch screen TVs and telephone handsets; smaller gadgets; good, functional and value-adding wearable technologies will flood the market, high performing sensors, automated homes, schools, intelligent automobiles, smart buildings among others are some of the innovative products that will be born which will excite and tickle consumers this year.
The 7 hottest ICT Skills Employers will Pay any Amount to Acquire in 2014
This is not going to be like any other year in the ICT industry both globally and locally. Most of the ICT skills that will benefit the unemployed , the youths, the old as well as the ICT Professionals who are desirous of promotion are truly new skills or hybrid of old and new.
BIG DATA ADMINSTRATOR (BDA) – Before 2014, what obtained was Data Administrator (DA). However due to the fact that the request for big data is skyrocketing- growing by as much as 30 %,( source: idc) there will be issue around big data management. Demand is currently outpaces supply with regards to experts in this area.
Most of these data are coming from Social media like Facebook, Twitter, Jelly, LinkedIn and 3rd Parties etc which Marketing requires on hourly basis to study the ever changing consumer behavioral attitude and taste.
Currently, there is substantial growth in ‘’data-optimized cloud platform- leveraging high volume real time data streams according to Gartner. Packages like HADOOP and Big Data Analytics are in hot demand.
Data storage has become an issue and how to build redundancy into storage and make the data fit for efficient and effective storage and consumption is a challenge that a BDA will be employed to solve by major international Enterprise. 24% of companies’ survey said they will hire BDA professionals in 2014 (source: IDC)
BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE AND ANALYTICS: With Big Data comes the biggest job of making sense out of all the mountain of information.
Volume of global data will expand to 35.2 zettabytes (idc) in two years time. 18% of companies’ survey by IDC submitted that they are looking for professionals with Business Intelligence skills to employ in 2014. It is seen as the second most difficult skill to get competent hands. This is why they command very fat salary starting with six digits.
In 2014 if you are dam, dam good in analyzing, interpreting, and presenting the data in a meaningful way that will help the CEOs to take profitable decision, you are sure to prosper as IT Professional. The joker is to combine Business intelligent skills with Plex Systems plus ERP plus Project Management. You cannot be poor again with this combination- if you are sound at each of them!
DEVELOPER’S PROFESSIONALS WITH CLOUD MOBILITY SKILLS: These are the gurus who build and maintain cloud architecture. There is a paradigm shift right now from ‘’infrastructure as a service (Iaas) to platform as a service (Paas).
And this is expected to be a data-optimized platform as against generic platform. More data centers will be built in 2014.
The cloud spending is expected to grow to $100billion in 2014 ( source:idc). Cloud application will become mission critical.
We do not have enough expertise in this field anywhere in the world. Those who want to make good money in 2014 are advised to go for it!
LINUX PROFESSIONALS: This is an age of SINGULARITY where OPEN-SOURCE is the KING powered by LINUX and ANDROID.
Open source has now been finally accepted by countries and organization who need inexpensive and stable platform.
And this adoption and shift is phenomena. According to Jack Cullen, President of IT Staffing Firm called Modis: ‘’ if you are an IT Professional looking for long term career growth there is no better place to be than working with open source’’. I strongly believe there are huge opportunities in Linux and Android skills in 2014.
VIRTULISATION EXPERTS: The art and science of commissioning, managing, and tearing down intelligent and virtual machines are now one of the fastest growing roles of date centers. Experts in virtualization will be in high demand this year.
IT UNTILITY MANAGER (ITUM): Everything in ICT is in a permanent state of flux- changing at the speed of light, getting more fragmented and sophisticated by the day. The CEOs don’t have time to keep pace with this dynamic industry.
And the resources to employ Consultant for each narrow, new segment are not available. Therefore, the CEOs are looking for the IT Utility Manager (ITUM) who has a holistic perspective of how technology works and communicates among one another.
The Manager who understands programming languages and how to connect them on different and competing platforms: desktop, laptop, mobile, cloud, etc.
He has skills in information security and Biometrics certifications and he can integrate all this with Social Technologies like facebook, Twitter, Jelly, LinkedIn etc.
This year, the role of biometrics in authentication will grow while the value of password will decrease.
Organizations will pay any amount of money for professionals who have deep understanding of biometrics authentication- facial, iris, fingers, voice, DNA, palm, pulse, in addition to the above skills. I call such a professional IT Utility Manager. This is a new role- which did not exist in 2013.
IT SECURITY, COMPLIANCE AND GOVERNANCE PROFESSIONALS: To prosper in 2014 as IT Security professional, one needs to combine it with compliance certifications like ISO, PCI/DSS, and Governance skills in risk Management.
Yes, security is like hunger in the stomach, it never goes away completely. It comes out in new dimension every day. However, most organizations are not interested in employing separate Manager for IT Security, Compliance and Governance.
They are all ‘’FIRST COUSINS’’ and they are safe to be warehoused in one room under one command. In 2013 IT Security was a big challenge. Most of the top global IT Companies like Apple, Facebook, Microsoft, LinkedIn, and all suffered security breaches. IT security breaches grew by 23% (IDC) in 2013.
In September 201 3, major US banks were hit with the largest denial of service (DoS) attacks in history. Also in October, South Carolina tax payer’s services were hacked compromising 3.6 million social security numbers.
In August, hackers broke into New York Times computer and stole passwords of high-profile Journalists and staff. This is why 21% of companies’ surveyed said they would hire the guy with the right skill-set in IT Security, Compliance and Governance.
International certifications like EC-Council CEH, CHFI, Encryption, ECSA, CISSP Risk Management, etc will sell like hot potatoes.
This is why Safenet encryption is growing like bush fire in the harmattan, being acknowledge by Gartner as the best in the Encryption space.
More so, most of the things we predicted came to pass in 2013. Then, in 2012 based on the trends which we observed on the horizons in the ICT industry globally and locally, we came to certain conclusions in specific sectors like MOBILITY, Training, and Security etc.
One, that OPEN-SOURCE via Android and Linux will rule the Smartphone and personal computers. Today Android’s share of the Smartphone operating system stands at over 75%. We saw that because Apple is a ‘’closed system’’, and with high price tag vis-à-vis competition, that it would lose market share: that happened until it came out with an ‘economy iPhone’.
We saw then that competition was about to throw Blackberry ‘under the bus’ as a punishment for its sluggishness in innovation.
With Blackberry recent mountain of looses of $4.4billion, it is a matter of time, if nothing urgent, radical and concrete is done before the bus will crush the most successful Canadian mobile telephone giant, which used to be the darling of youths and the Military globally. As we predicted, IT security breaches skyrocketed.
As we predicted, the seven IT skills that we submitted would blossom, actually did, and smart guys who took practical steps to acquire those skills really prospered in 2013.
Kashifu Inuwa, CCIE, the Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), has emphasised that integrating intelligence, security, and sustainability is critical to driving Nigeria’s digital transformation and global competitiveness.
Inuwa made the remarks on Tuesday in Kano while delivering a goodwill message at the opening of the 19th International Conference (CONNOVATE 2025) of the Nigerian Computer Society (NCS), themed “Intelligent, Secure, and Sustainable Innovations for a Connected World.”
Represented by Engr. Salisu Kaka, Director of E-Government and Digital Economy Development, Inuwa said the three elements were now indispensable drivers of national progress. He highlighted the need for their convergence to unlock new opportunities in Nigeria’s technology sector, citing Estonia’s X-Road platform — which enables 99% of government services online — as a global model.
“In Nigeria, trust is the ultimate currency in our high-stakes digital environment, where scams and cybercrime are prevalent. Security builds and protects this trust,” Abdullahi said.
He stressed that while security provides the foundation, intelligence builds the structure, pointing to Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), and data analytics as tools for addressing Nigeria’s complex challenges. Warning that “innovation without security is unsustainable,” he likened it to “a high-performance race car without brakes.”
The DG urged the next wave of Nigerian startups to go beyond digitising existing processes to creating new value, citing AI-powered wealth management and ML-driven remote diagnostics as examples.
He further highlighted the various Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy (FMCIDE) initiatives supporting this vision, including the National Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (NCAIR), the Computer Emergency Readiness and Response Team (CERRT), the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA) 2023, the national digital identity programme, interoperable payments, and human capital initiatives such as the 3 Million Technical Talent (3MTT) and Digital Literacy for All (DL4ALL) programmes.
Inuwa cited example with International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP) President, Antony Wong, that called for stronger protection and strategic use of data in the Global South to safeguard indigenous knowledge. He stressed the importance of legal clarity on data ownership as Nigeria’s cultural heritage in medicine, ecology, and art is digitised and incorporated into AI systems. Wong praised Nigeria’s role in the recent World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) treaty protecting genetic resources and traditional knowledge.
Delivering his welcome address, the NCS President, Dr. Muhammad Sirajo, said the conference would serve as a platform for IT professionals to address critical issues, including intelligent systems, fintech, sustainable energy, and innovations in agriculture, health, education, and national planning.
“This conference will provide an interdisciplinary platform for researchers, practitioners, and educators to present and discuss recent innovations, trends, and solutions for improving technological systems,” Sirajo said.
The week-long event includes plenary sessions, a doctoral consortium, a youth and entrepreneurship forum, the Fellows Forum, the Annual General Meeting, an IT quiz competition for students, and an induction ceremony for new members. It will conclude with the election of new national executives, a dinner, and an awards night honouring contributions to the ICT sector.
The African Development Bank (AfDB) is betting big on Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a catalyst for delivering Africa’s ambitious Agenda 2063.
With hands-on training in tools like ChatGPT and Google Gemini, the Bank believes the results could redefine how the continent plans, measures, and delivers its development goals.
Through its Joint Secretariat Support Office, the AfDB has provided technical and financial support to the 5th annual training workshop for African Union member states, focusing on the use of AI to track and implement the second ten-year plan (2024–2033) of Agenda 2063.
The five-day workshop, held in Lusaka, Zambia, was co-organised by the African Union Commission and the African Capacity Building Foundation.
Participants from across the continent rolled up their sleeves for hands-on training with emerging AI platforms like Ailyse, Google AI Studio, and Perplexity.
The goal of Africa’s multilateral development finance institution is to turn complex development data into actionable insights that can drive smarter decisions, faster interventions, and more accountable governance.
AbibuTamu, lead programme co-ordinator at the AfDB, said AI was now an indispensable tool for Africa’s future.
“These tools are not only revolutionizing how data is collected, analysed, and reported, they are also enabling more targeted policy interventions and efficient resource allocation,” Tamu told delegates.
Agenda 2063, dubbed “The Africa We Want,” is the African Union’s 50-year blueprint for inclusive growth and sustainable development. The second 10-year plan prioritises industrialisation, digital transformation, and sustainable livelihoods.
With AI now in the mix, African policymakers can track progress in real-time, spot bottlenecks before they choke projects, and reallocate resources where they are needed most.
The AfDB’s backing underscores a broader strategy of boosting both human and institutional capacity that propels African states to harness the digital revolution.
Beyond technical skills, the Lusaka workshop doubled as a peer-learning platform, with countries sharing real-world success stories on integrating AI into national planning and reporting.
“If Agenda 2063 is Africa’s long-term roadmap, this AI training is about upgrading the continent’s GPS that ensures leaders not only know the destination, but also have the intelligence to navigate every twist and turn on the way,” said Tamu.
It is holiday season in many parts of the world. These days though, going on holiday does not always mean turning your back on office life – hybrid work cuts both ways.
Today’s widespread connectivity—available at airports, train stations, restaurants, hotels, and most indoor public spaces—makes staying connected easier than ever, with free Wi-Fi in many locations and reliable 4G or 5G coverage elsewhere, helping to facilitate a seamless blend of work and leisure even while on holiday.
This increase in connectivity among travellers has not gone unnoticed by cyber criminals. Kaspersky experts analysed nearly 25,000 free Wi-Fi spots in Paris ahead of the Summer Olympic Games and Paralympic Games. The analysis revealed that almost 25% of these networks had weak or no encryption, making users vulnerable to personal and banking data theft.
Travellers often have their guard down. The unfamiliar surroundings of a new location or a different language can throw up a useful smokescreen for a cyberattack, meaning additional care needs to be taken when logging on. Fortunately, a few smart tools and habits can help you stay protected while enjoying the flexibility of remote work.
Use a VPN for secure connections
A VPN is one of the most effective ways to safeguard users’ online activity, especially when working from unfamiliar locations. By encrypting Internet traffic, a VPN ensures that hackers can’t intercept sensitive data like login credentials or financial details. This is particularly important when accessing work emails or company files on public Wi-Fi, where cybercriminals often lurk.
Switch to an eSIM for reliable, secure mobile data
Another useful digital tool that provides a seamless way to stay connected using local mobile networks with no physical SIM card required is the eSIM. This is a game-changer for international travellers who want to avoid sky-high roaming charges or the hassle of hunting down temporary SIM cards in foreign countries.
With an eSIM, a user can download a local data plan before you even arrive at your destination, ensuring instant connectivity the moment you land. This eliminates the need to rely on unsecured Wi-Fi hotspots, significantly reducing your exposure to cyber threats.
Plus, many eSIM providers allow you to manage multiple profiles on a single device, making it easy to switch between work and personal data plans without juggling multiple phones.
Services like Kaspersky eSIM Store enables users to purchase and activate data plans in advance, track usage and top up as needed, all from a single app.
Enable two-factor authentication (2FA)
When travelling, people often leave devices unattended. To protect against unwanted people logging in, travellers should ensure two-factor authentication (2FA) is enabled on all critical accounts and that passwords are used on all devices.
Final tips for a secure workation
Even with a VPN, eSIM and 2FA in place, your devices still need strong defenses against malware, phishing scams and ransomware. Cybercriminals often target remote workers who may let their guard down while travelling, making real-time protection essential.
Modern antivirus software does more than just scan for viruses, it actively blocks malicious downloads, warns you about phishing attempts and even secures your passwords and financial data.
For the most robust security, consider a solution like Kaspersky Premium, which combines antivirus protection, a VPN and password management into a single, easy-to-use package.
By combining a VPN, eSIM and strong antivirus, you can work from anywhere with confidence, whether you’re sending emails from a poolside or joining a video call from a festival tent.
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