E-Business
FinTech: AFF Doles Out $50,000 for 48-Hour Hackathon
Africa Fintech Foundry [AFF], a fintech accelerator, is organizing a 48-hour hackathon titled Recode Nigeria, which comes with up to a $50,000 prize.
It has the support of industry giants such as Microsoft, IBM, Access Bank, and Idea Nigeria.
Holding on March 24-26, the programme attracts multiple teams of talented developers, designers, problem-solvers, and out-of-the-box thinkers to build brilliant solutions to the most vexing problems in financial services.
According to AFF spokesperson, Victor Okigbo, the banking industry needs to enhance its existing customer experience. “The mission of these participants is to transform the mode of customer engagement, enhance the customer experience and create solutions that bring value to banking customers”.
During the hackathon, he said, participating teams would have the privilege of creating excellent solutions that combine API’s from one of Nigeria’s leading financial institutions, IBM’s Bluemix platform, Microsoft Azure amongst others.
Roosevelt Ogbonna, executive director of Commercial Banking- Access Bank, said the bank is collaborating with the AFF to “ensure that shareholders value and growth in tomorrow’s complex financial technology ecosystem can be delivered. By supporting initiatives like Recode Nigeria hackathon, we have teamed up with technology titans like Microsoft, IBM and other numerous technology startups to create the future together.”
Enumerating what the participants derive from using its latest platforms, Microsoft spokesperson Dona Sarkar, said that as a cloud-computing infrastructure for building, deploying and managing applications through a global network, “Microsoft Azure offers the startups the opportunity to host their applications in the cloud. As such, they don’t need to purchase or manage their own servers. That is why the winner will get access to the Azure platform.”
However, upon completion of the contest, Okigbo gave an assurance that a team at the hackathon would be accepted into the 17-week AFF accelerator programme with up to $50,000 seed investment. He added that the winning teams will get up to N3million-prize money, one-year’s access to IBM’s Bluemix and Microsoft Azure platforms.
While explaining the IBM Bluemix cloud service, IBM’s spokesperson Akintomide Akingbade, said the service supports several programming languages and services to build, run, and manage applications on the cloud. “We are backing the startups at Recode Nigeria hackathon with the latest cloud offering from IBM. With this partnership, we are enabling the software geniuses create and manage their mobile and web applications on the cloud”.
Individuals and teams can register at www.recodenigeria.com. The number allowed in a team, Okigbo said, is a minimum of two and a maximum of five persons. Participants care free to register as individuals or with a team.
Industry leaders and representatives are among the judges that will select the winners of the Recode Nigeria hackathon. Each submission will be scored based on certain criteria with the final score being the average of all scores.
The judges include Victor Etuokwu, Ernest Ndukwe, Iyinoluwa Aboyeji and Joseph Sam.
Other supporting organizations are Emaginations, Re:write, Trium, Systemic Logics, Accelerate TV, ntel, Dev Center and Design Institute.
E-Business
NITDA, NIMC Partner for Seamless Data Exchange Capabilities
National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) have announced a collaboration on National Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) and Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) to enhance synergy between digital identity, payment ecosystems and secure seamless data exchange capabilities for Nigeria.
NITDA, which made the announcement on its X handle, said that the collaboration was to further strengthen Nigeria’s digital economy in line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda,
During the meeting, Kashifu Inuwa, director general of NITDA, and Bisoye Coker-Odusote, director general of NIMC, with some management staff of both organisations, discussed various initiatives, which include building DPI stacks for a secured and seamless data exchange and forming partnerships to transform the national identity system.
This collaboration also aims to harness the potential of the innovative ecosystem and emphasise the use of public-key infrastructure (PKI) to drive digital transformation in Nigeria.
To ensure a smooth implementation, a 12-man committee was set up.
This committee will play a crucial role in kickstarting and harmonising the initiatives and is expected to deliver a comprehensive implementation report within the next 4 weeks.
E-Business
Expert Urges FG to Harmonise NIN, BVN to Tackle Crimes
Noble Ajuonu, head, Sydani Technologies Ltd., has urged the Federal Government to harmonise National Identification Number (NIN) and Bank Verification Number (BVN) to tackle crimes and insecurity in the country.
Ajuonu made the call at a media roundtable, organised by Sydani Group in Abuja.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the roundtable focuses on driving sustainability through a comprehensive analysis of Nigeria’s key development areas.
Ajuonu said that Nigeria could overcome its security challenges and pave the way for a safer, more secure future for all Nigerians by embracing technology and implementing practical solutions,
“We need to harmonise data, prioritise seamless integration of databases like NIN, BVN, and security agency records, establish clear protocols for data sharing and access, with robust safeguards against misuse,’’ expert said.
According to him, the unified data pool will empower intelligence gathering and targeted operations.
He also called for investments in smart surveillance, intelligent video analytics software, training of personnel in data analysis, interpretation of data in real-time to combat crimes.
“There is need to implement a legal framework for call interception in criminal investigations, with strict oversight to prevent abuse, encourage community cohesion, training of tech savvy security personnel with tech-enabled tools.’’
Ajuonu also urged the government to address infrastructure deficit in technology, saying that technology was all encompassing to address insecurity.
“According to the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), as of December 2023, only 104.2 million Nigerians had been enrolled for the National Identity Number (NIN).’’
Ajuonu added that over 122.2 million citizens left uncaptured for NIN were people in rural areas where enrolment centres, digital services were limited.
“Most crimes are being perpetuated from rural communities and this lack of comprehensive identification creates a gap where elements not captured in the national database can constitute public nuisance, crimes.
“There is the inadequacy in the integration of NIN, BVN and Voters Identification Number (VIN).
“Advanced call interception and analysis tools, used successfully in other countries, could provide invaluable insights into criminal networks and operations but infrastructure is lacking,’’ he said.
Also, Mr Godfrey Petgrave, the Agricultural Expert, Sydani Group, called for empowerment of smallholder farmers with access to finance and training to enhance productivity.
According to Petgrave, Nigeria requires policy reform and institutional strengthening to improve agricultural practices and embrace digital agriculture solutions to address food insecurity.
Mr Akolade Jimoh, another expert of the group on health, advocated for expanded community-based health insurance programmes for rural and underserved areas.
Jimoh added that the country needed to encourage Public Private Partnership to revolutionise products design and quality improvement on health services.
E-Business
Konga launches Infinix Brand Week with Incredible Deals
Konga, Nigeria’s leading composite e-commerce group, is thrilled to announce the launch of amazing deals at its Infinix Brand Week. Infinix, a leading global smartphone brand known for its innovative products and cutting-edge technology promises exclusive discounts and special offers on select smartphones, marking an exciting milestone in the realm of online shopping.
Shoppers can expect nothing short of extraordinary deals on a wide range of Infinix products, all available exclusively on the Konga online platform. With discounts of up to 30% off, this partnership between Konga and Infinix aims to redefine the shopping experience for tech enthusiasts across Nigeria.
Konga Brand Week has become synonymous with excitement and unbeatable deals, and this year’s edition is no exception. In addition to exclusive discounts on Infinix smartphones, shoppers can explore a diverse array of products across various categories, including electronics, fashion, home essentials, and more.
“At Konga, we are dedicated to providing our customers with the best shopping experience possible,” said Rita Ohaedoghasi, VP Marketing at Konga. “The Infinix Week during Konga Brand Week allows us to continue delivering on that promise by offering incredible discounts and special offers on some of the most sought-after smartphones in the market.”
To stay updated on the latest developments and exclusive deals during Konga Brand Week, shoppers are encouraged to connect with Konga across all platforms, including social media and the Konga website. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to score big savings and elevate your tech game with Infinix and Konga.
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