Telecom
Digital Inclusion: NITDA Reassures PLWD of Continuous Support
As part of efforts to promote digital inclusion, the National Information Technology Development Agency, NITDA, has assured that it would continue to give equal opportunities to the vulnerable especially People Living with various forms of disabilities in the country.
This assurance was made by Kashifu Inuwa, Director-General, NITDA at the just concluded five days training and empowerment program on Digital Skills and Entrepreneurship program organized for People Living With Disabilities, (PLWD), the South-South edition which was held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
The NITDA boss who was represented at the closing ceremony by the Acting Director, Corporate Planning and Strategy, Aristotle Onumo, maintained that empowering differently able people in our society would promote digital inclusion.
While describing digital transformation as one of the panaceas to the mirage of problems confronting the nation, Inuwa maintained that training and empowering the PLWD is part of the initiatives to lift Nigerians out of poverty, hence the approval of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy, NDEPS, by president Muhammadu Buhari in 2019.
He said the training and empowerment for the “differently able” in our society are to make them financially independent and close the digital divide created by their conditions.
He further states that; “the empowerment program is one of the many opportunities given to Nigerians towards the implementation of the NDEPS agenda. This program also speaks to three pillars of NITDA’s Strategic RoadMap and Action Plan, SRAP 2021-2024, which are Digital Transformation, Digital Inclusion, and Digital Literacy and Skills, all of which were designed to make Nigeria a sustainable digital economy.”
“Through the training, NITDA has been able to provide opportunities for participants to acquire the ability to use digital technology to create an enterprise that would culminate into wealth creation”, he said.
Inuwa, while encouraging the beneficiaries of the empowerment program to continue to engage in personal development which would aid the increase of their productivity added that they should return to their various communities and transfer the knowledge to others.
The Director-General affirmed the NITDA’s continual inclusion of PLWD in all its initiatives adding that attaining a digitally inclusive society requires collaborative efforts from all stakeholders.
While encouraging the PLWDs to be more industrious, Inuwa quoted Dr. Ashi Mary Magdalene of the Department of the Special Education University of Calabar who posits that “no matter how disabled anyone is, they should not feel sorry for themselves. The disabled are not special, just a little different.”
The lead, Technical and Operations, Rivers State ICT Department, Mr. Austin Dimkpa who represented the State government at the closing ceremony remarked that the empowerment program provides an opportunity for the beneficiaries to join the league of the financially stable people in the world adding that the 10 richest people in the world are in the Information Technology sector.
While expressing his profound appreciation to NITDA for training and empowering the PLWDs in Rivers State with computers and IT working tools, he advised beneficiaries to make judicious use of the tools to better their lots and reduce their reliance on other people.
Association of Telecommunication Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) on Monday commended the Federal Ministry of Communication, Innovation, and Digital Economy (FMCIDE) for spearheading a new initiative known as ‘Project Bridge’.
Tony Emoekpere, president, ATCON, stated in an interview with NAN in Lagos that the initiative aimed to create a robust and resilient telecommunications backbone across Nigeria.
Emoekpere stated that the project was an ambitious public-private partnership designed to connect all 36 states and Abuja, as well as LGAs, via fiber optic cables.
According to him, the initiative is not meant to replace existing infrastructure but to complement it, creating a more resilient network.
“Right now, most of the networks that we have are linear in nature. ’Just imagine, if there’s only one road from Lagos to Ibadan; if anything happens to that road, you would not get to Ibadan.
‘’This project will create alternative routes,” he said.
The ATCON boss stated that the project was modeled after the successful PPP framework in the energy sector, with the government contributing a certain percentage to the Special Purpose Vehicle and the private sector providing the remaining funding.
He stated that the project’s goal was to establish alternative, redundant connections, thereby ensuring that services remained uninterrupted even if one part of the network was compromised.
The president expressed the full support of telcos, noting that the project would enable members to deliver services more effectively in locations where infrastructure was currently a significant challenge.
“With this project, we will have multiple options,” he said.
Project BRIDGE involves building a nationwide fiber optic network to expand digital infrastructure and connectivity, rather than a physical bridge, as part of Nigeria’s National Broadband Plan.
The project is a public-private partnership ($2 billion cost) using an SPV to deploy 90,000km of fiber-optic cable to enhance education, healthcare, and the digital economy.
MTN Nigeria has successfully completed a scheduled network maintenance operation that affected 101 sites across 15 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in Adamawa, Borno, and Kano States.
The restoration marks a significant step in the company’s ongoing efforts to enhance service reliability in the Northeast region, amidst multiple fibre cuts and vandalism.
The maintenance, which took place on Sunday, August 24, involved the cutover of traffic to a newly installed fiber span along the AFCOT–Bawo Village route in Adamawa State.
This upgrade was necessary to replace a previously damaged section of the network infrastructure. All service maintenance was done within timeframe and restorations before 1 PM on Sunday August 24th.
We can confirm that all impacted sites have been fully restored, and services are now operating normally. We appreciate our subscribers’ patience and sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused during the downtime.
The affected services included 2G, 3G, 4G, and enterprise connectivity, with temporary disruptions experienced in LGAs such as Girei, Song, Mubi North, Hong, and Michika in Adamawa; Askira/Uba and Shani in Borno; and Nasarawa in Kano.
The work was scheduled during daylight hours to ensure the safety of field engineers, given the linear and unprotected nature of the route.
This restoration is part of MTN’s broader strategy to strengthen its infrastructure in underserved regions and ensure consistent service delivery across Nigeria, amidst constant fibre cuts and vandalism.
TikTok has launched its music insights platform, TikTok for Artists, in Nigeria to support artist growth and fan engagement across the country’s vibrant music industry.
The platform, which debuted globally earlier this year, provides artists, labels, and management teams with access to daily-updated dashboards and analytics tools to track music performance, audience demographics, and fan interactions.
Toyin Mustapha, Head of Music Partnerships for the UK, Ireland, and Sub-Saharan Africa at TikTok, said the initiative was part of the company’s commitment to empowering African creators.
“With the launch of TikTok for Artists in Nigeria, we’re giving artists and their teams access to insights that can help them engage their fans in more meaningful ways and grow their careers globally,” Mustapha said.
The platform offers detailed song performance metrics, including views, posts, and creator engagements per track. It also provides granular post-level data such as likes, comments, shares, and completion rates, alongside demographic breakdowns by gender, age, and language.
In addition to analytics, TikTok for Artists includes educational resources and step-by-step guides to help artists build sustainable careers.
A key feature of the platform is the Pre-Release tool, which allows artists to launch campaigns for upcoming albums and enables fans to pre-save tracks on streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music.
British artist Jordan Adetunji described the platform as a “game changer,” noting its value in helping artists and their teams plan effective campaigns.
TikTok said the rollout reaffirms its investment in Africa’s creative economy and aims to foster deeper connections between artists and fans across the continent.
The platform is now available to all certified TikTok Artist Accounts, with access also extendable to managers and label teams.
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