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Expert Berates Govt. for Poor Telecom QoS

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Mr. Collins Onuegbu, Group Managing Director, Signal Alliance Limited
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An ICT expert and software specialist, Collins Onuegbu has blamed the federal government over the continued poor service deliverance by all major telecom providers in the country, insisting that the government needs to invest massively in infrastructure and public power supply before raising expectation on the operators, Nigeria CommunicationsWeek can report.

Onuegbu, managing director and CEO of Signal Alliance, a leading IT systems integration company in Nigeria said consumers’ expectation of the mobile providers are sometimes out of proportion.

He insisted that telecom firms in Nigeria were operating under unbearable conditions not matched anywhere else.

“Sometimes when we blame these telecom operators for poor quality of service, we should also look at the environment in which they are operating. The questions we should ask include: are they operating under basic acceptable parameters of providing quality of service? Has the government provided them with the much needed environment from which to provide grade A services and they are not doing so? I think, there are fundamental issues that we should look at before heaping blames on these operators,” Onuegbu stated.

He noted that for the country to have the kind of high grade QoS Nigerians are clamouring for, the government needs to invest massively on telecom infrastructure.

 He lamented the situation in which Nigeria is now close to fibre glut, yet broadband services remain low.

“Right now, we are talking of three sub-marine fibres (SAT-3, MainOne and Glo1) in operation in the country. Shortly, WACS (another undersea cable) would join them and there is even expectation a fifth one would join before 2015. But all these fibres have not in anyway improved broadband application in Nigeria. Why? The fibres are best all in Lagos where you have considerably improved service provision, but hinterland, their effects are not experienced.

“This is where government needs to come in and invest massively in the provision of infrastructure to boost broadband intake throughout the country,” said Onuegbu.
The Signal Alliance boss also stated that Nigeria’s current taxation regime was detrimental to service growth in the industry. “Taxation regime is too rigid and posses a barrier to growth,” he stated.

Onuegbu who is also chairman of the education and capacity building sub-committee of the institute of software practitioners of Nigeria (ISPON), said Nigeria’s emerging new ICT policy being propagated by the Minister of Communications Technology, Mrs. Omobola Johnson, was “a right move in the right direction.”

“What she (the minister) seeks is bringing together all public procurements under one umbrella – the ministry of communications technology. This streamlining of policy is a clear indication she has purpose, and is focused on achieving this purpose.

“Hitherto, each government ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) operated independently, but the new policy seeks to put a stop to duplications, thereby enhancing efficiency. The policy also would ensure that the MDAs have the right quality of professional staff to manager their ICT operations,” he stated.

He believes introducing ICT in the daily operations of the MDAs would greatly reduce incidents of fraud associated with government establishments in Nigeria.


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NRC, Ponzi Scheme Collapses Resulting Loss of Billions of Naira

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National Reading Culture (NRC), an online investment platform targeting Nigerians has collapsed, resulting in the loss of billions of Naira for investors.

NRC, Ponzi Scheme Collapses Resulting Loss of Billions of Naira

The website unexpectedly shut down, blocking users from withdrawing their funds and locking in their investments.

Just like all other investment scams, victims were lured with promises of doubling their money in few weeks.

When National Reading Culture eventually crashed, the operators vanished with users’ funds, leaving investors devastated.

How the Platform WorkedTask-Based Earning:

According findings, National Reading Culture lured users with promises of making money by completing simple daily tasks like reading articles, clicking links, or inviting friends.

They also offered investment tiers to  earn higher daily profits, where users had to deposit their own money into the platform.

Evidence showed the website previously operated as a Chinese job search platform before rebranding into an “earning” scheme.


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NSITF Partners South African Insurer on Digital Transformation

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The Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Rand Mutual Assurance (RMA) to collaborate on digital transformation aimed at strengthening worker protection systems and support economic growth.

According to RMA, the agreement was concluded during a visit by its delegation to Abuja.

The partnership will focus on institutional capability development, modernising operating models, improving service delivery and sharing knowledge between the two organisations.

Through the partnership, RMA and NSITF will collaborate to strengthen institutional capability, modernise operating models, accelerate digital transformation and improve services for workers and employers.

The organisations will also explore opportunities for knowledge exchange and the adoption of best practices in social security administration.

RMA said the agreement forms part of its broader engagement with governments, regulators and social security institutions across Africa to support improvements in governance, operational resilience and service delivery.

“Our partnership with NSITF reflects much more than the signing of an agreement,” said Mandla Shezi, group chief executive officer of RMA. “This partnership is not simply about sharing knowledge. It is about co-creating the next generation of African social security systems.”

He added: “By combining our respective strengths, we can help build institutions that are more resilient, more responsive and better equipped to protect workers while supporting national development.”

Shezi said the future of social security depends on integrated systems where prevention, insurance, healthcare, rehabilitation, technology, investment management and institutional capability work together.

 


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Microsoft to Lay Off 4,800 Workers

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Microsoft has announced plans to cut about 4,800 jobs, representing roughly 2.1 percent of its global workforce, with  Xbox, its gaming division, expected to bear the largest share of the layoffs.

Microsoft to Lay Off 4,800 Workers

The company said more than 1,600 positions at Xbox would be eliminated immediately, while another 1,600 jobs would be phased out over the next year as part of a major restructuring of the gaming business.

In a memo to employees, Amy Coleman, executive vice president, Microsoft, said the company was streamlining its operations to focus on areas that deliver greater value to customers in a rapidly changing technology industry.

Asha Sharma, chief executive officer, Xbox, described the move as “the most significant restructure in Xbox history,” saying the changes are intended to position the gaming business for long-term growth rather than downsizing.


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