News
Communication Networks & Infrastructure Security (1)
Africa is growing…..
The continent’s rate of growth is projected at between 5 – 7 % over the next 3 years (World Bank). Compared to the sub- 3% rates of growth for Europe and North America (if you are to disregard recession rumours), and you can see that Africa is indeed growing.
With the increasing rate of development, both within individual countries and across the regions, there has been an increase in the exploitation, extraction and development of natural assets and resources. This has led to the consequent growth in creation and development of infrastructure, industries, factories, and the capital assets and inventory across the African landscape. The Chinese for example, has trade worth US$50 billion as of Africa. Much of this has been tied to infrastructure developments and investments.
The new investment and development ‘race’ for Africa by investors, extractive industries, speculators, joint ventures, Foreign countries et. al, has spawned a side-effect that has to be taken account of. With rapid growth and the creation of wealth and capital assets, there has been an increasing need for quality and comprehensive Communications and Security infrastructure . This is required to provide a capability to monitor, track and manage the increasingly critical additions to the natural, economic and infrastructural landscape that we now see within and about us.
Firstly, when you create infrastructure; roads, schools, bridges, industries, factories, dams, power stations, etc. you need to plan how to design, equip, supply (raw materials in the beginning; supplies after launch), manage and maintain these assets.
To plan, you need to communicate; to bring people, ideas, tasks, requirements, instructions and updates to their personnel and stakeholders that need to be aware, kept in the loop; instructed, updated.
Having planned (and hopefully been successful), you then need to manage.
You manage the infrastructure assets for much the same reasons as when you are planning, but with more of a focus on the need to report, monitor, update, pass instructions and updates on progress, utilisation, performance and the like to stakeholders and interested parties.
However, an key aspect of infrastructure implementation in Africa, especially when compared to comparative asset implementation in the first world, has to do with the need to manage assets and inventory over large distances, especially when considering distance from asset to manager and from source to consumer.
Hospitals, power stations, grid and distribution infrastructure, Mobile and public telecomms networks, switching and transmission assets, factories, industries, extractive, mining and agro-allied operations – all need to be managed.
Locally and often in a regional or centrally co-ordinated Command-and-Control model to bring about the necessary efficiencies (Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)) and Return on Investment (RoI) for their investors, stakeholders – hopefully resulting in improved, quality delivery of public services to the communities and peoples who are supposed to be receiving this benefit.
So there are two parts to this equation – firstly internal communications between the nodes of control and organisation within the entities and organisations that either own and/or maintain these infrastructure assets and inventory.
Then there are the external communications systems that provide communications between the infrastructure managers and the stakeholders interested in their delivery – government and their agencies, regulatory bodies, communities, etc.
How are these set up? What priority is given to the design, planning, implementation and, upon launch, maintenance and upgrade (yes, upgrade) of this vital resource to support the effective management of these vital assets towards meeting their key Priority objective – Delivery?
How well can we remotely monitor our often widely-dispersed (and not easily reachable) assets out there in the field? How effective are we in tracking their location (GPS), performance (IP, Data networks), maintenance requirements, (SCADA) etc.?
How well do we use networked communications – in a secure (can’t be hacked or intercepted), resilient (multiple levels of backup and transmission) and redundant (multiple, independent means of operation) manner to ensure that assets that have been developed and implemented at often high capital costs in terms of foreign-acquired currency, are being maintained and manage at an optimum level of performance and efficiency?
What priority is given to its budget, assessment, resilience, redundancy ..? Is a Single Point of Failure (SPOF); e.g. single power source; that goes, it all goes.
I know of an incident at a Petroleum Product Tank Farm facility where the single power/network resource ran for the entire plant and all assets on it; i.e. no resilience, no redundancy. As the fire took out the network, so went the firefighting capability at a stroke….
You can imagine what happened to the facility after that…
And as to the rebuilding/replacement costs (value of money/NPV) and the impact on supply of a critical commodity for economic development,….
And then, there’s the Security component… but that’s another article
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The World Bank Group has announced the 31-month debarments of United Aviation Services Limited (UNASEL), a transportation services company based in Nigeria, and Air Vice Marshal Alkali Mamu, its owner and president, “in connection with fraudulent practices under the Enhancing Niger Northeastern Connectivity Project,” according to a press release issued by the multilateral development bank.
The statement said that the project aims to enhance connectivity and road safety along the Zinder-Agadez Road section and improve access to basic socioeconomic infrastructure for selected communities in that road section.
However, according to the statement: “UNASEL and Mr. Mamu presented false experience documents in a prequalification application to qualify for a contract under the project. This was a fraudulent practice under the World Bank’s sanctions framework.”
“The debarments make UNASEL and Mr. Mamu ineligible to participate in projects and operations financed by Bank Group institutions. The debarments are part of two settlement agreements under which UNASEL and Mr. Mamu admit culpability for the underlying sanctionable practices,” it added.
The statement further said: “Per the Bank Group Sanctioning Guidelines, the settlement agreements provide for a reduced period of debarment in light of UNASEL and Mr. Mamu’s cooperation.
As a condition for release from sanction under the terms of the settlement agreements, UNASEL and Mr. Mamu commit to developing and implementing integrity compliance measures that reflect the relevant principles set out in the Bank Group Integrity Compliance Guidelines, and Mr. Mamu further agrees to complete corporate ethics training.
UNASEL and Mr. Mamu also commit to continue to fully cooperate with the Bank Group’s Integrity Vice Presidency.
“The debarments of UNA SEL and Mr. Mamu qualify for cross-debarment by other multilateral development banks under the Agreement for Mutual Enforcement of Debarment Decisions that was signed on April 9, 2010.”
Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State, has approved the allocation of a parcel of land in Enugu, the state capital, for the establishment of a state-of-the-art Digital Fabrication Centre by the Industrial Training Fund.
Mbah announced this while receiving a delegation from the Industrial Training Fund on a courtesy visit to the Government House, Enugu.
The ITF disclosed this on Friday in a statement signed by its Director of Press and Public Relations, Thomas Ngor.
According to the statement, Mbah described the proposed project as timely and aligned with his administration’s vision of transforming Enugu into a leading destination for investment, innovation and technology-driven industrial development.
He noted that the future of economic prosperity lies in deliberate investments in human capital and emerging technologies, adding that the state has continued to create an enabling environment for innovation, enterprise and sustainable growth.
The governor explained that his administration has made technical education compulsory in the state’s basic education system, with emphasis on digital literacy, robotics and mechatronics to prepare learners for the future of work.
According to him, many traditional trades are now driven by digital technologies, making it imperative to equip young people with relevant technical competencies that will enable them to compete globally and contribute meaningfully to economic development.
Governor Mbah further disclosed that his administration has built smart schools across the state, equipped with robotics centres, mechatronics laboratories and other modern learning facilities, to prepare youths for the evolving global economy.
He noted that artificial intelligence is expected to contribute about $20tn to the global economy in the coming years.
He therefore stressed that the state must be intentional about upskilling its citizens, adding that the establishment of the ITF Digital Fabrication Centre will significantly strengthen the state’s drive to build a knowledge-based economy, foster innovation, promote local manufacturing and create employment opportunities for its growing youthful population.
Earlier, Afiz Ogun, the Director-General of the ITF, who led the delegation, said that upon his appointment by President Bola Tinubu, he was mandated to upskill Nigerian artisans to international standards.
He explained that the Fund subsequently repositioned its technical and vocational skills development efforts through strategic initiatives, including the Skill-Up Artisans Programme, which is designed to train, certify and license Nigerian artisans to international standards.
Ogun disclosed that the Fund had already established a Digital Fabrication Centre in Ikeja, Lagos, with the capacity to produce more than 400 different products. He therefore requested the allocation of land in Enugu State to establish a similar centre with the same production capacity.
According to him, the initiative is aimed at promoting industrialisation, reducing dependence on imports and preparing Nigerians for opportunities in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
He also reaffirmed the Fund’s readiness to enter into public-private partnerships that will transform Nigeria’s artisanal ecosystem.
Ogun further noted that digital technologies, including artificial intelligence, robotics and computer-aided manufacturing, are rapidly transforming the global economy, making it imperative for Nigeria to deliberately invest in upskilling its workforce to remain globally competitive.
The ITF delegation was later conducted on a guided tour of facilities at one of the smart schools established by the Enugu State Government.
Glovo, a multi-category tech company, has announced its integration into the generative AI ecosystem with the launch of its “Shopping Assistant” for ChatGPT and Claude. Users can now discover retail products, compare prices, and seamlessly order any item using natural conversational language with the AI systems.
The Glovo experience inside such platforms introduces a conversational commerce model that shifts from a search-based web to an intent-based web. Rather than navigating traditional app menus and filters, users can express needs, such as asking for a “last-minute gift for a coffee lover under ₦50,000”, and the assistant handles semantic search, location validation, and product curation.
A Seamless, Concierge-Like Experience
Once both platforms have been connected through either ChatGPT or Claude apps, the user will be able to have a multi-turn dialogue where the assistant remembers context and constraints, such as budget caps. Users receive a visual carousel of up to five highly customised product options available at local stores. Each product displays its image, name, store details and ratings, and price. While the search and discovery experience takes place directly on the Generative AI platforms, selecting a product via the “view on Glovo” button takes the user to the Glovo mobile or web app, where the payment and final purchase are exclusively completed.
Strategic Focus on Retail and Growth
Glovo is prioritising the retail and grocery sectors for this initial launch, capturing the established habit of using AI for product research. Generative AI has driven a significant jump in retail traffic globally, so this first-mover advantage aims to meet customers where they are meeting Gen AI daily, and ensure it captures high-intent organic traffic as search behaviours evolve.
“We’re always looking for ways to meet our customers where they already are. Being available on Claude and ChatGPT means people can discover what Glovo has to offer as part of a natural conversation, with no friction. Glovo has always been about being the everyday app that provides choice and convenience, and this is another step in that direction”, said Shiro Theuri, Chief Technology Officer at Glovo.
How to look for products in the Glovo app through ChatGPT or Claude
- The user must sync ChatGPT or Claude with the Glovo app with the plug-in.
- Once synced, the user must type in @glovo followed by their request.
- The AI platform displays a carousel with 5 available options for the user.
- If the user wants to purchase any of the products or continue searching within the Glovo app, they must click “View on Glovo”, which will redirect the user to the Glovo app or website.
- After the order is confirmed, the store will prepare the item(s) and the courier will head up to the pick-up location. The user will receive the order in minutes.
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