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Cybersafe Foundation, UK Govt help vulnerable groups, SMEs upskill on cybersecurity
CyberSafe Foundation, a leading non-governmental organization in the information security ecosystem in Nigeria, and its partners – Foreign CommonWealth & Development Office (FCDO), have hit the set targets to equip digitally vulnerable groups and Small & Medium Enterprises (SMEs) with the knowledge and skills required to identify, protect, detect, defend and respond to COVID-19 instigated cyber threats, enabling a safe digital community.
The UK Government, through its Prosperity Fund Digital Access Programme, signed a grant agreement with CyberSafe Foundation to carry out the “Safe Digital Community during COVID-19 Project” as part of UK’s cyber risk mitigation support to Nigeria’s COVID-19 response.
The grant agreement which was signed by FCDO and CyberSafe Foundation on the 7th of September 2020, led to equipping digitally vulnerable groups and 1,504 Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).
The Safe Digital Community Project directly benefited 1,504 SMEs across 35 States in Nigeria, and upskilled 3,057 employees in cyber safety essentials.
For the digitally vulnerable groups including people with limited digital experience, the project helped raise their awareness in safe cyber hygiene, enhance their online security and enable a safer digital community, reaching over 10 million people.
Speaking on the project, Confidence Staveley, Executive Director, Cybersafe Foundation thanked UKAID and 18 volunteer cyber security expert trainers for aligning with the Foundation to empower the participants, adding that through the ‘No Go Fall Maga’, cyber awareness comedy skits, more than 3.3 million people were educated on vishing, multi-factor authentication and phishing.
She said that beneficiaries cut across computing/technology, real estate, transport & services, oil & gas, retail/manufacturing, fashion, hospitality & leisure, healthcare, charity/NGO, education, consulting, financial services, amongst others.
Also, the partners executed massive work through the radio and did a novel cybersecurity awareness song in collaboration with Cobhams Asuquo which was played 3,973 times on 32 radio stations across Nigeria. In addition, 13 episodes of the No Go Fall Maga radio drama series created to drive awareness about cyber hygiene best practices, reached more than 5.2 million radio listeners.
During the project’s duration, an intensive social media mass awareness campaign saw close to 10 million people digesting 20 short cyber hygiene videos developed by the team.
Statistics also show that the SME upskilling and upscaling cyber security training garnered a lot of results. With 1,504 SMEs participating, 40.7% of the beneficiaries are female-owned.
Prior to the training, 57% of the beneficiaries could not identify a phishing email. However, post-training review indicates that 83% of them now understand prevalent attack vectors and preventive measures.
Interestingly, 76% have now implemented one or more security controls.
Staveley who is visibly elated by the growing testimonials from participants, said, “the impact has been massive and we are prepared to sustain the tempo even in 2021. We are going to increase the number of SMEs by 100%; in other words, we are targeting 3,000 SMEs in this rerun and will continue to use social media and radio to drive cybersecurity awareness. We are calling for SMEs to join the new batch for training. They can register via this link http://learn.cybersafefoundation.org/”.
Commenting on the project, the UK Government’s Head of Digital Access Programme and Country Adviser, Idongesit Udoh, said, “The first run of the Safe Digital Community During COVID-19 project recorded enormous impact courtesy of the excellent delivery by Cybersafe Foundation. The project afforded approximately 3057 employees the opportunity to get cybersecurity training, raising the bar in cybersecurity preparedness for Small and Medium Scale Businesses in Nigeria, also impacting millions via social media and radio.”
“This project demonstrates the UK Government’s continued support for Nigeria and its digital sector, recognizing the tech ecosystem’s role in inclusive growth and development. A rerun of this project will sustain the huge impact recorded by the CSF on cyber awareness and extend cyber capacity building to more SMES across the country during this pandemic where there is increased cyber risk for small businesses”.
National Population Commission (NPC) has commenced the nationwide digital registration of births and deaths under the Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (E-CRVS) system to strengthen legal identity management and improve demographic data.
Speaking at a press briefing in Lokoja on Tuesday, Mr Afolabi Yori, federal commissioner representing Kogi, said the initiative became operational nationwide on July 1, through the VitalReg platform.
Yori described the development as a landmark in Nigeria’s civil registration system, noting that it would modernise birth and death registration through a technology-driven platform that meets international standards.
He said the digital platform would improve service delivery, strengthen data integrity and ensure that every birth and death occurring in Nigeria was accurately documented and securely stored.
According to him, civil registration is more than an administrative process, as it provides reliable statistics that support public policy formulation, resource allocation and national development planning.
“Nigeria records an estimated five million births annually, yet millions of births and deaths remain unregistered.
“Birth registration coverage currently stands at about 57 per cent nationwide, while death registration remains below 20 per cent,” he said.
The commissioner said that the commission had established 4,011 functional registration centres across the country’s 774 local government areas and was working to expand the number to about 8,000.
He added that the commission was strengthening collaboration with stakeholders to improve the capacity of registration personnel and ensure prompt documentation of vital events through the VitalReg platform.
Yori said the platform would provide faster registration services, 24-hour online access, digital certificate issuance where applicable, and reduce paperwork, waiting time and unnecessary travel.
He disclosed that the platform was being operated under a Public-Private Partnership with Barnks-forte Technologies Ltd. as the commission’s technical partner to ensure system availability, cybersecurity and continuous technological improvement.
He called on parents, healthcare institutions, traditional and religious leaders, civil society organisations, development partners and the media to support the initiative by encouraging the prompt registration of births and deaths.
Earlier, Samuel Omonakpeme, director in Kogi, NPC State, described the commencement of the digital registration system as another milestone in efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s Civil Registration and Vital Statistics system.
Omonakpeme stated that the initiative aligns with the Federal Government’s digital transformation agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goal 16.9, which seeks to provide legal identity for all.
He appreciated the Federal Government, the leadership of the commission, UNICEF and other development partners for supporting the implementation of the initiative.
The state director also urged parents, guardians, health institutions, community leaders, religious organisations and the media to mobilise public support for the timely registration of all births and deaths.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that ICT personnel of the commission, led by Ehimoni Kolawole, conducted a live demonstration of the digital birth registration process using the VitalReg platform.
The demonstration showed that the registration process captures the biodata of both parents, while at least one parent must possess a valid National Identification Number (NIN) to complete the registration of a newborn.
Yola Electricity Distribution Company (YEDC) has alerted its customers to a fraudulent message circulating on social media, falsely claiming that electricity consumers can receive an additional 20 per cent bonus units when recharging their prepaid meters through unofficial channels.
In a statement issued by the company’s management on Monday, YEDC described the claim as false and urged customers to disregard the misleading information, stressing that it did not originate from the company.
According to the statement, YEDC does not offer bonus electricity units through individuals, agents, personal bank accounts, phone numbers, or social media contacts.
The company advised customers to purchase electricity tokens only through approved cashless payment platforms, including the YEDC Pay App, OPay, Interswitch, and other authorised vending channels, or to visit the nearest YEDC office for assistance.
YEDC also cautioned customers against sharing their meter details or personal information, or making payments to unauthorised persons claiming to represent the company.
The company further urged customers to rely exclusively on information disseminated through its official communication channels to avoid falling victim to fraud.
The management thanked customers for their continued cooperation and reaffirmed its commitment to serving them.
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has disclosed that two foreign currency accounts opened in connection with the controversial Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) have remained inactive since their creation, with no funds deposited and no transactions recorded.
The revelation emerged on Monday during the ongoing investigation by the House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee probing the circumstances surrounding the establishment and operations of the council.
Lawmakers are investigating allegations that the PFIPC was created and operated without a valid legal framework and outside the established procedures required for government agencies and institutions.
Appearing before the committee, representatives of both the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF) distanced their institutions from the establishment of the council.
The Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation stated that it neither created the council nor possessed the constitutional authority to establish federal agencies.
Representing the office, officials explained that the OHCSF is only responsible for approving administrative structures of government agencies after all necessary requirements have been fulfilled.
According to the office, records showed that the council submitted a request on August 6, 2025, seeking approval for its organisational structure.
However, the application was not approved because the required supporting documents were not attached.
The committee heard that despite the rejection of the request, officials linked to the Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC)/PFIPC later appeared during the 2025 manpower budget defence exercise and sought approval for staffing and recruitment arrangements.
The office disclosed that the council informed government officials that its activities were being carried out largely through personnel seconded or deployed from other institutions.
Lawmakers were told that the council requested approval for a total of 314 positions. The figure consisted of 14 existing officers and an additional 300 proposed positions.
The Office of the Head of the Civil Service further revealed that concerns later arose regarding documents presented by the council as evidence of its legal backing.
Officials told the committee that upon examination, the documents failed to display essential features expected of an enabling law or valid legal instrument establishing a government body.
Mrs. Didi Esther Walson-Jack, head of the Civil Service of the Federation, also rejected claims that her office deployed civil servants to work for the council.
She maintained that the office did not assign personnel to the body and did not provide office accommodation for its operations.
According to her, matters relating to the creation, supervision and oversight of government agencies fall under the responsibilities of other relevant institutions, including the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
The Central Bank of Nigeria also provided details regarding accounts linked to the council.Nigerian current events
Hamisu Abdullahi, director at the apex bank, who represented the CBN Governor before the committee, explained that the bank opened two foreign currency accounts following a formal request from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.
He told lawmakers that the request was received on July 30, 2025, and instructed the bank to create a United States dollar domiciliary account and a Pound Sterling domiciliary account.
Abdullahi stressed that the CBN only opens accounts for government agencies after receiving official authorisation from the Accountant-General’s office.
However, he disclosed that the accounts never became operational because the council failed to provide authorised signatories required for activation.
As a result, both accounts remained dormant from the day they were opened.
He informed the committee that neither account had received deposits nor processed withdrawals. The accounts also recorded no foreign exchange allocations, remittances, inflows or outflows.Governor election news
According to him, the balances in both accounts remain at zero.
The CBN official further stated that the council did not engage directly with the apex bank regarding the management or operation of the accounts after they were created.
Following the submissions, members of the committee demanded more information as part of efforts to determine the full scope of the council’s activities.
Hon. Abdulmalik Danga, chairman of the committee, directed the Central Bank to submit comprehensive records relating to both the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council and the Presidential Economic Advisory Council.
The committee requested details covering the opening of the accounts, their operational history and any information connected to related banking activities.
Lawmakers also instructed the CBN to work with commercial banks to identify and provide records of any accounts linked to the entities under investigation.
However, the committee is expected to continue its hearings as more government agencies and officials appear before lawmakers to provide explanations on the controversial council and the circumstances surrounding its operations.
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