News
D-Link to change Future with Innovation, Creativity-Uwaje
Chris Uwaje is Information and Communication Technology (ICT) impresario. He is a renowned expert in the fields of engineering solutions, research, software design and development respectively.
Uwaje was recently appointed regional director for D-Link International in charge of West Africa including Ghana, Gambia, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.
He spoke about his new appointment and D-Link
New Face of D-Link
Thank you. The new face of D-Link translates to enhancing the critical Information Infrastructure and encouraging Corporate Businesses and Governments all over the world – especially those in West Africa – to understand that the future and survivability of their nations and corporate businesses grossly depend on the health and security of her IT infrastructure. D-Link is world class technology Brand of International repute for functionality and quality. I am therefore, very happy to be invited on board to restructure and add value to its West African (Nigerian) Market Channel. In summary the New face of D-Link amounts to enhanced quality reassurance and commitment to our numerous end-Users and Customers. The message is that D-Link will deliver unparallel innovative quality products, solutions and value-added technical support services to the People and Government of Nigeria and West Africa in general.
Lessons as D-Link Regional Director for West Africa
A great deal. First is that D-Link Corporation is a reliable and efficient corporate entity with ability to create, design and manufacture top quality Networking Brand with International recognition and acceptance. D-Link has indeed become the centre of gravity of the global Networking Technology Domain. Today, D-link is the No.1 in global Wireless Technology Solutions and service delivery. With over 6000 Engineers World-wide and 4 State-of-the-Art Research and Development (R&D) Laboratories located in USA, China, India and Taipei, D-link products such as Routers, Switches, Network Firewall, IP Surveillance Security Cameras, to mention but a few – have enhanced the end-to-end solutions and service delivery at the Small Office, Home office and Enterprise levels. The mission of the new face of D-Link is codified in the will to change the future of Networking through creativity and resounding innovation wrapped in cost-effectiveness and simplicity of use.
Some people think that D-Link is just a small company manufacturing only switches?
That is not correct. Founded in 1986, D-Link is a global leader in the design, manufacture and marketing of advanced networking, broadband, digital, voice and data communications solutions. Following our company motto, "Building Networks for People", D-Link continually meets the global networking and connectivity quality standards and needs of digital home consumers, small office professionals, small- to medium-sized businesses, and enterprise environments.
D-Link’s core competency is in Ethernet connectivity. In fact, we are the global leader in providing network connectivity solutions to small and medium-sized business. From the beginning, D-Link engineers have researched, designed and manufactured innovative, standards-based networking solutions. We sell our state-of-the-art hardware at the best prices. Price may be the deciding factor for many new customers, but D-Link innovation, reliability and service keeps them loyal year after year.
A major contributor to our success is our established and expanding network of global distribution and delivery channels that brings products to more than 100 countries every day. We do more than meet the growing demand for computer networking and communications solutions – we fuel it. Our development of global distribution channels in more than 100 countries has resulted in double-digit growth every year for 20 years. D-Link surpassed the $1 billion revenue milestone in 2005, driven by record sales in every geographic region of the world.
Global Presence: D-Link’s international headquarters are located in Hsinchu, Taiwan, Republic of China. More than 120 global offices serve North America, Asia, Europe and Africa including the North American headquarters in Fountain Valley, California. D-Link maintains strategic operations in Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands, Denmark, Finland, Russia, Israel, the Middle East, South Africa, West Africa – with Nigeria as a Hub, Chile, Australia, Japan, Vietnam, Singapore, China, India and other countries on five continents.
Innovative Leader: Our engineers have been key contributors to the development of the rapidly expanding home and business networking environment we take for granted today. D-Link has been awarded patents and copyrights on a variety of technology platforms – including Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) computer chips, hardware technology designs, software applications and other intellectual properties. D-Link product solutions are high-performance and feature-rich by design. As a key contributor to the Digital Home Working Group (DHWG), D-Link embraces industry standards as criterion for the development of new and innovative connectivity and communications solutions for home and business. D-Link products are certified by the FCC, the Wi-Fi Alliance and CableLabs.
D-Link Corporation manufactures over 600 ICT quality products. The fact and truth is that D-Link is a world class Networking product manufacturing and solutions company with a difference. The core difference is that D-Link is focused on creative areas embedded in working together with customers, to understand their needs and moving forward to deliver absolute customer satisfaction to them. At D-Link, we create, innovate and build the future with our customers’ demand in-view covering the lower, medium and enterprise levels.
Secret behind the New Face of D-Link
The fact behind the secret is that D-Link has finalised arrangements to set-up a Technical Support Centre in Lagos, Nigeria – the first in West Africa, At D-link, we have learnt and belief that “the Internet now represents the future of Mankind, and Networking Technology is the bridge to that future. Indeed, D-Link is globally recognized as not only the IT bridge but also the centre of gravity of world-wide Networking Products, solutions and services. The new face of D-Link therefore goes beyond ’Building Network for People’ to “Preparing the future Information Society Networking total environment for mankind”. It promises to be creatively captivating and rewarding to everyone.” It will be awesome.
The Future and Cyber Security Issues
The state of a Nation’s critical Information Infrastructure will determine her security status. Cyber Security and Cybercrime issues will become the dominant subject of IT activities and challenges of our time. The danger is that many unprepared countries such as Nigeria will be venerable to the emerging impact – unless specific policies and established and critical actions are timely implemented. The role of D-Link is to ensure that those Tsunamic impacts do not lead to the complete breakdown of the survivability framework of government and the corporate business. The main damage is going to come from the Networking environment – incorporating information routing and delivery, storage, secured data access and interchange. D-link will plan, design, deliver and support safe-computing with unmatched solutions at all levels of e-Government, Education and Hospitality sectors.
Priorities
As global leaders in the Networking-Wireless Domain, D-Link priority is to look at challenging Networking disruptions and move rapidly to deliver quality solutions to them. This is one of our key strategies of sustaining our leadership in the Networking environment. The vision is positioning D-Link as the Preferred Market Leader (PML) in building and delivering Network solutions and support services for the West African People. With particular reference to Nigeria, my mission amongst others is: To Transform the Nigerian IT-Network Solutions and services into the reliable Hub to serve and service the needs of the entire West African Sub-Region. D-link will build Networks and Solutions for the West-African People – through sustained delivery of original quality and cost effective Technology Solutions and Services.
Our objective is to add value to National Development Projects, Research and Development programs, Deep Market Penetration, Mass Market appeal – winning top class customers and product support services in Nigeria and West African Sub-Region. To Make Nigeria the 1st Address and Central Clearing House for D-Link Networking Products, Solutions and services in West Africa. Attain the Following Long-Term Goals: Product Research and Development Center; Production Assembly Point for SKD and CKD components; Warehouse Facility for Shipping to West African Countries. Channel Development Priorities: Priority Level one is to development of the Nigerian /West Africa Market. Priority Level two is to make people of West Africa ‘Think D-Link’ by embedding D-Link solutions and services images into their mind-set. Our Strategy Focus aims to deliver the following goals: Dominance of the Nigerian Wireless LAN and ICT Security surveillance market, Winning Strategies in the Mass market Arena. Building a reputable profile for Managed Switches; Building Commensurate Infrastructure and Manpower Capacity; Engaging the Project Solution Models; Achievement of well over $50Million (USD) Target by 2010. Ultimately, D-Link West Africa will be solutions focused and contribute significantly to upgrading D-Link world-wide into a US$5billion business.
In a striking moment of global recognition for African talent in artificial intelligence, Shenzhen-based Nigerian technologist, Francis Okafor has emerged as the second-place winner at the 2026 Tencent OpenClaw Hackathon, a fiercely contested competition hosted by Chinese tech giant Tencent.
The achievement places the Nigerian engineer among the top innovators in one of the world’s most competitive technology hubs, Shenzhen, often described as China’s Silicon Valley.
Okafor’s journey to the podium was anything but scripted. Walking into Tencent’s facility on the day of the contest, he found a room already buzzing with elite programmers deep in preparation.
“Laptops open. Heads down. Some people setting up their system before the challenges even dropped,” he recalled, contrasting the scene with his own uncertainty at that moment. “And then there is me — a Nigerian looking around like, okay Francis, what exactly are you doing here?”
Rather than confidence, his first reaction was raw nerves. “I won’t lie, I had goose bumps. Not the inspirational kind,” he admitted, describing a quiet internal debate about whether he had wandered into territory far beyond his league. Yet that hesitation quickly gave way to experimentation, a hallmark of the hackathon spirit.
Earlier that same week, Tencent had rolled out OpenClaw integration into WeChat (known domestically as Weixin), exposing its massive user base to AI agent capabilities.
Okafor, a senior technology lead, artificial intelligence advocate, and global community organiser, had already been stress-testing the system and decided, on the spot, to build his entry around it. “I had been pushing it hard all week just to see what it could do… so when the challenges dropped I thought, you know what, let me use this thing as my weapon.”
That decision proved decisive. Competing against some of the most accomplished engineers in China’s hyper-competitive tech ecosystem, Okafor’s solution stood out for both ingenuity and execution. “It went far enough apparently,” he said with understated pride after securing second place.
Remarkably, he had entered without a grand plan. “I didn’t go in with a strategy. I went in for the thrill of it… Honestly I thought I would learn a few things and go home with a good story.” Instead, he left with a trophy, and a narrative that has resonated far beyond the competition hall.
Beyond personal triumph, Okafor emphasized the broader technological significance of the moment. Tencent released the WeChat OpenClaw plugin on the very morning of the event, effectively putting advanced AI agent tools into the hands of an estimated 1.4 billion users.
In his view, this signals a profound shift in how artificial intelligence will reach the public. The company, he observed, is “not just making AI accessible to developers… they are bridging it to everyone,” while using hackathons to identify innovators capable of pushing the technology forward, regardless of origin.
Okafor was acutely aware of his uniqueness in the room. “I was definitely the only African there and for sure stood out,” he noted. Yet what mattered was not nationality but capability. “Nobody cared about where I was from. They cared about what I built.”
His message to aspiring technologists, particularly those from underrepresented regions, is both simple and powerful: show up. “Enter things you think you have no business entering,” he urged. “The worst case is you learn something. The best case is you shock yourself.”
In an industry often defined by geography, capital, and institutional advantage, Okafor’s victory offers a compelling counter-narrative. Talent, preparation, and courage can still disrupt expectations, even in rooms that seem designed for someone else.
As he concluded in a line that has since captured widespread attention: Black excellence, he said, “doesn’t need a geography.”
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has urged the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to deepen collaboration and provide faster operational support in Enugu State.
Zonal Director of the EFCC Enugu Zonal Directorate, Commander Daniel Isei, made the call during a courtesy visit to the CBN Branch Controller in Enugu, Mr Otutubuike Justice Agbaeze, on Tuesday.
The engagement forms part of ongoing efforts to boost inter-agency ties, enhance financial sector accountability, and fortify anti-money laundering initiatives nationwide.
Isei described the CBN as “our most critical partner in the fight against economic and financial crimes,” highlighting years of joint operations and the bank’s role in securing recovered assets.
“The CBN naturally stands out as one of our most critical partners… it serves as a secure repository for valuables recovered by the EFCC and it has greatly enhanced our operations,” he stated.
While commending past cooperation, Isei appealed for quicker responses to the EFCC’s frequent investigative requests from its Enugu office.
“We understand that these requests may be demanding, but timely responses are crucial, as time is of the essence in financial investigations. We therefore seek your continued indulgence in ensuring that our letters receive expeditious attention,” he added.
In response, Agbaeze reaffirmed CBN’s dedication to the partnership, pledging expert support and improved synergy “in the interest of financial system stability and national development.”
As smart devices with artificial intelligence (AI) tools, and always-on services become part of everyday life, the cybersecurity habits many people formed a few years ago may no longer be enough.
From AI-powered scams to social media trends that encourage users to upload personal details, the way people interact online is changing quickly. Ensuring that you stay secure now requires small, deliberate actions in your daily digital behaviour. Experts from Kaspersky, a global cybersecurity and digital privacy company, share the below advice to stay safe online.
- Be cautious with verification requests. Many scams now mimic legitimate verification processes, asking users to confirm accounts, update payment details, or approve login attempts. Because people are used to frequent security prompts, it is easy to respond automatically. Pause before sharing verification codes or personal information and independently verify requests through official websites or by contacting service providers directly.
- Cultivate healthy AI usage habits. AI agents, chatbots and multimedia-generating apps can be convenient and entertaining, but uploading high-resolution photos or personal information carries privacy implications. Facial images can function as biometric identifiers, and once shared with an online service, be it AI or a social network, control over how that data is stored or reused may be limited. Before using AI tools, review privacy policies, minimise the personal information they provide, and avoid uploading sensitive documents or confidential content.
- Do your homework on AI. For parents, the rise of AI assistants introduces another dimension. While AI tools can help in making education interactive and gamified, children may turn to AI tools for homework support or entertainment without fully understanding how their data is used or how to evaluate responses critically.
Open conversations about responsible AI use, privacy awareness, and the importance of not oversharing personal information can help children build safe digital habits from an early age.
- Audit your online subscriptions. Reducing digital exposure is another simple but often overlooked step. Over time, unused subscriptions, dormant accounts, and forgotten apps accumulate personal data and payment details. Regularly reviewing subscriptions, deleting unused accounts, and checking which apps have access to personal information can significantly reduce risks of this data being leaked.
- Secure your devices and home. Device longevity and smart home security also play an important role. Older devices that no longer receive security updates may contain unpatched vulnerabilities.
Ensure that smartphones, laptops, routers, and smart home devices are running the latest firmware and are protected with strong passwords and multi-factor authentication. Changing default passwords on connected devices and securing home Wi-Fi networks are essential steps in protecting both personal data and physical spaces.
As technology and AI becomes more integrated into daily life, security is less about dramatic measures and more about consistent, informed habits.
“Technology evolves quickly, and our online behaviour should keep pace,” says Brandon Muller, Technical Expert for the Middle East and Africa region at Kaspersky. “Take time to review privacy settings, app permissions, and connected third-party services, removing anything that is no longer needed. By being more deliberate about what we share, how we verify requests, and how we manage our devices, we can significantly reduce exposure to modern cyber risks while enjoying all the benefits of new technologies.”
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