General News
Grey Market Operators are Money Launderers-Umo
Ime Umo, managing director and technology solutions group lead for West Africa, HP West Africa is a seasoned IT sales professional with 16 years of experience from several large multi-national organizations in West Africa. He has a strong background in business-to-business sales as well as an excellent knowledge of the West African IT markets.Umo spoke with chike onwuegbuchi on a wide range of issues. It is his first ever interview since his appointment in April this year.
HP’s Business outside PCs and Laptops
HP is a technology company. We are not just into ink and cartridges; we do more than that. Today, we are the number one IT company in the world. We provide solutions in the telecom space; solutions such as form location register, which is a subscriber database for any telecom operator. We also do things like interactive voice recognition solution. We have the public sector solutions like treasury management; another solution we have in the telecom space is revenue assurance and threat management solution. Threat management solution helps telcos eliminate fraud in the environment and then the revenue assurance helps check within the telecom network where they have leakages. Another solution which we provide is on number portability. Number portability solution is about ensuring that if a subscriber is not happy with telecom company A, he can switch to telecom company B using the same number. So, there are hosts of other solutions that we provide and we are also into consulting and integration; we have the capacity to do SAP implementation, we have skilled staff locally we use in doing this. We also have skills around Oracle implementation as well. These are the services we render as HP. On top of it, I said that we are the number one telecom company in the world today. This is stemmed from the fact that we have done a lot of acquisitions; we have acquired a company called EYP, which is into Data center transformation and design. We have also acquired a company called EDS. EDS is the leading outsourcing company in the world. So, today with these acquisitions that we have made – EYP, EDS and a host of others; we are number one today from a technology standpoint.
Focal Points as MD of HP Nigeria
As I said earlier when I was talking about sectors that we are interested in, we foresee that there will be further consolidation in the banking and insurance sectors. That is a key area for us, where we are going to put in a lot of efforts to ensure that we sail our value proposition into this market space. We also foresee a lot of growth potentials in the telecoms industry. Like I said in my earlier discussion with you, the total subscriber database for the telecom companies is 40 million and the Nigerian population is roughly about 140 million; so that means we are just scratching the surface of the number of subscribers that are hooked up. The telecom space is another key area for us. Then the public sector; government is the biggest partner in terms of IT. Today, many state governments and even federal government, is looking at solutions and technologies that would help optimize what they do. In this space, HP has a clear e-government solution that will be implemented elsewhere which, we are ready to bring to various government parastatals that we are engaging.
HP’s Growth in Nigeria
Well, it is linked to the different sectors that we are looking at. Financial services are part of the areas that we need to put in our efforts. Of course, we also need to carry out some educational initiatives which we are putting in place that will enable the students know what they are doing and also support them from the academic point of view. We are also having quite a number of initiatives together with the banks; we are doing finance projects for some government initiatives such as Nepad, which is an African initiative put together to support educational services and to help people grow technology wise. So, there are quite a lot of things that we are looking at doing.
Challenges and Solutions
Most importantly, we talked about grey marketing. We also require the assistance of the press to do write-ups about the disadvantages and effects of grey marketing. I talked about two aspects of grey marketing – people buying, taking advantages of promos in America and Europe. They buy at cheaper prices and then come here. What we are doing is to encourage our local partners and distributors by doing promos to meet the price point of the grey market. Another aspect of grey marketing which we need to look at is money laundering. A couple of people are doing grey marketing just because they want to bring money back into the system and so, they launder money. For us, that is difficult to stop because all they are interested in is to make the money come in and not in selling. That is why they sell them at ridiculous prices and there is no way we can meet that price point. These people are fraudsters, they are laundering money; to them it does not necessarily matter, they just want to bring in money. To address people who are genuinely doing grey, who are taking advantage of promos in America and Europe, what we do locally is to drop the price point and do promo to encourage our local partners to compete with them favourably.
Grey Market and Warranty
It is very clear, people who buy from grey market do not enjoy any level of support from us; they do not enjoy any level of warranty. So, even they take that product to the service center, all they do is pay for the service and at the end of the day, they might end up paying the same amount of money that they used in buying the product when the equipment spoils because they are going to source for the spare parts abroad and we are going to charge them for the services.
Government Efforts at Checking Excesses
You know, government is increasingly asking foreign investors to come in and we expect that since government is doing that, they should create an enabling environment. We would expect that for international organizations that are operating within the country – government should let other vendors who would participate or buy the products, to use local companies to ensure that the sales are being made through the local HP office. Again, I guess it is not really much of the government’s responsibility – government has a say but HP internally needs to devise a means of ensuring that when leads about Nigeria are sent to other HP offices, that those leads should be routed back to Nigeria. So, it is a two-way thing; it is not just the government, we at HP would have to come up with that programme, say if they get a request from an end-user in Nigeria, they should route it back to HP in Nigeria. That would help our business. We also would expect government to support us in this direction. If they want to make technology purchases, they should insist that those purchases should be done with the regional HP office which is located in Nigeria.
Social Responsibility
I talked about that in my earlier discussion with you. That is what we have done. If you go back to the earlier interview, you would dig up all those facts and then come up with what we are doing. I mentioned a couple of universities which you are aware of. There is a clear directive on social responsibility from the Global Office, and you will see what we have done so far on the records. We are going to invest; we are doing business here and we will continue to invest in the region.
Competition and PC Market
Competition is good, we are not running away from competition but there is a differentiating factor and the total cost of ownership; we are looking at the total cost of ownership – who is able to give you the right level of support if you buy the equipment? In terms of total cost of ownership, we have three different support centers in Nigeria – Abuja, Lagos and Port-Harcourt and whoever is buying HP products will not have an issue; if there is a support issue, the person can take it to the support center and it is taken care of, whether the equipment is under warranty or not. If it is under warranty, it is fixed at no charge to the person but if it is outside warranty, it is fixed at a minimal charge to the person. So, we would continue to support the environment. We are not running away from competition. Just to give that level of assurance, HP is the only OEM in this region that has made a significant investment. We have support; we have resources internally that would help in supporting people. If you aggregate it, the total cost of ownership of acquiring or purchasing an HP platform is cheaper than the total cost of ownership of buying any other brand because if you look at local systems products, some of them give you six months and then the warranty is just on labour alone. If the parts spoil, you are expected to buy them. We look at it from the total cost of ownership and the investment we have made and the support mechanism and structure we have put in place. So, these are the things that make us more competitive than the rest of the vendors. It is not just the pricing of the product alone but the total cost of ownership.
Guinness Nigeria has officially begun rewarding consumers under its nationwide ‘Open For More’ National Consumer Promotion (NCP), with an impressive ₦17 million in rewards to 107 winners during the campaign’s first live draw held on July 31, 2026.
The inaugural draw instantly transformed the fortunes of consumers across the country, producing seven new millionaires, who each received ₦1 million, alongside 100 additional winners, who each walked away with ₦100,000. The milestone marks the beginning of a series of weekly live draws that will see hundreds more Nigerians rewarded throughout the promotion.
The seven ₦1 million winners are Marcus Barieepie, Ani Valentine Ogochukwu, Okafor Sochima, Taiwo Adebola, Zubair Rukayat, Oluwatobi Femi, and Ebubechukwu Okolo.
The live draw was conducted under the supervision of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) to ensure transparency and fairness. Representatives of the commission present included Dr. Olubunmi Otti, Zonal Coordinator, FCCPC Southwest, and Mrs. Abosede Ogundeji, Surveillance and Investigation Officer.
Speaking during the draw, Ramanathan S, representing Guinness, said the promotion reflects the brand’s enduring commitment to celebrating and rewarding the consumers who have supported Guinness over the years.
“For decades, Nigerians have made Guinness a part of their milestones and celebrations. Today, we are proud to give back by putting ₦17 million directly into the hands of 107 consumers in our very first draw. This is only the beginning. Over the coming weeks, many more Nigerians will experience life-changing rewards as we continue to celebrate the loyalty of the people who have made Guinness part of their stories.”
He added that all weekly draws will continue to be streamed live across Guinness Nigeria’s official platforms, enabling consumers to witness the winner-selection process in real time and reinforcing the transparency and credibility of the promotion. He also encouraged eligible consumers nationwide to participate, noting that every valid entry presents another opportunity to win.
The ‘Open For More’ National Consumer Promotion offers consumers the chance to win ₦1 million every day, ₦100,000 cash prizes for 1,000 winners, and a Toyota Land Cruiser Prado as the grand prize. Altogether, the promotion will reward consumers with more than ₦400 million in cash and prizes.
To participate, consumers simply need to purchase specially marked bottles of Guinness Foreign Extra Stout or Guinness Smooth, locate the unique code beneath the crown cork or can lid, and enter the code via the designated campaign platform.
With ₦17 million already won in its opening draw, the campaign is off to a remarkable start, reinforcing Guinness Nigeria’s commitment to rewarding consumer loyalty through transparent processes and unforgettable experiences that go beyond the product. Consumers are encouraged to look out for specially marked promotional packs and follow Guinness Nigeria’s official communication channels for updates, winner announcements, and details of upcoming draws.
National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has expressed readiness to deepen collaboration with Nigerian universities to promote research, innovation and technology-driven solutions to local challenges.
NITDA, UniAbuja
NITDA’s Director-General, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, stated this when the management of Yakubu Gowon University, formerly the University of Abuja (UniAbuja), led by its Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Hakeem Fawehinmi, paid a familiarisation visit to the agency’s headquarters in Abuja.
Abdullahi said stronger collaboration between NITDA and tertiary institutions was essential to building a robust innovation ecosystem, developing practical skills and positioning Nigeria for technology-driven economic growth.
He stressed the need for increased investment in research, particularly in emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), blockchain, cybersecurity and cloud computing.
“We need to invest more in in-depth research with universities to build a robust research ecosystem that will help us develop solutions.
“Research will focus on harnessing AI, IoT, blockchain, cybersecurity and cloud technology, among other emerging technologies, to improve our lives and grow our digital economy,” he said.
The DG described universities as critical talent factories required to achieve Nigeria’s digital transformation aspirations.
“NITDA has a vision to make Nigeria a digitally empowered nation. You (UniAbuja) are the talent factory, and we cannot achieve our vision without talented Nigerians.
“The only way to achieve that is by working with institutions like yours. So, we need to build talent,” he said.
Abdullahi also advocated the integration of AI education across disciplines in tertiary institutions, saying students needed practical digital skills to remain relevant in the evolving world of work.
“We can work together to explore ways of introducing AI across the board as a general study course in tertiary institutions.
“Elements of AI should be included in every field of study to equip our students with the hands-on skills for navigating the real world,” he said.
According to him, NITDA is already collaborating with key education sector stakeholders, including the Federal Ministry of Education, National Universities Commission (NUC), National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) and National Commission for Colleges of Education.
He said the agency was also working to promote digital literacy programmes across all levels of education to ensure that graduates acquire skills relevant to industry requirements.
Earlier, Fawehinmi said the university’s visit was aimed at seeking NITDA’s partnership and support in strengthening digital infrastructure and technology-based training at the institution.
He expressed appreciation for NITDA’s contributions to the Digital Geoscience Centre at the university.
The Vice-Chancellor said the university was willing to collaborate with NITDA on joint research, capacity-building initiatives and innovation programmes capable of contributing to Nigeria’s socio-economic development.
“We could go into partnership with you to provide data, collaborative engagements, staff exchanges and joint research hubs, so that we can produce high-level human resources.
“The university is committed to serving as a strategic academic partner to NITDA by providing academic expertise required to advance your national digital transformation initiatives,” he said.
The proposed collaboration is expected to strengthen the link between academic research and industry needs while creating opportunities for technology innovation, skills development and practical solutions to Nigeria’s socio-economic challenges.
A New Mexico court has ordered Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, to pay $567 million to address the alleged harms caused to young people by its social media platforms.
Meta
The ruling by Judge Bryan Biedscheid came in the second phase of a landmark trial concerning the impact of Meta’s platforms on children and teenagers.
The judge said $420 million of the amount would be dedicated to treatment services for young people, while the remaining funds would support awareness and prevention programmes, screening services and other related costs over the next five years.
The latest financial order comes on top of $375 million in civil penalties awarded against Meta in March after a jury found that the company knowingly harmed children’s mental health and concealed information about child sexual exploitation on its platforms.
During the second phase of the trial, prosecutors asked the court to order fundamental changes to Meta’s platforms, including measures to reduce addictive features, improve age verification and prevent child sexual exploitation through stronger privacy settings and increased oversight.
The court subsequently ordered Facebook and Instagram to introduce banner notifications and informational screens explaining their safety features, recommended practices and tools for addressing inappropriate comments.
The platforms must also regularly display the information, while an educational campaign in New Mexico will be subject to review by the state.
New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez said the ruling sent a clear message that technology companies could be held accountable when their product designs knowingly exposed children to risks.
“Today’s decision is a victory for every parent who has worried about what social media is doing to their child and every child who deserves to grow up safer online,” Torrez said in a statement.
Meta said it would appeal the ruling.
“We work hard to keep people safe on our platforms and have been transparent about the challenges of identifying and removing bad actors and harmful content,” the company said.
The company said it remained confident in its record of protecting teenagers online and would continue to defend itself against what it described as claims that misrepresented the facts.
On age verification, the court said federal children’s privacy laws restricted Meta’s ability to apply certain verification tools to children under 13.
The court cited the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which limits the collection of personal information from children under 13.
Rather than imposing a blanket age-verification requirement exclusively on Meta, the judge ordered the company to continue improving its age-assurance tools in New Mexico.
The tools include the use of artificial intelligence to estimate users’ ages based on signals such as their social connections and the type of content they post and consume.
Meta was also ordered to attempt to develop a dedicated model for predicting whether users are under 13 within the next two years.
Additionally, the company must request proof of age from Facebook and Instagram users in New Mexico whom it estimates to be under 13.
Where Meta determines that a user is under 13, or under 18 but cannot determine a specific age, it must treat the user as being under the applicable age threshold until the user verifies their age.
The court further ordered Meta to partner with schools or a child-safety organisation to establish a reporting portal through which school officials can flag users suspected to be under 13.
Meta must also delete personal information it has collected from users under 13 and submit progress reports twice a year detailing its compliance with the court-ordered measures.
The ruling comes as Meta faces thousands of lawsuits from families alleging that children have been harmed by social media use.
The company is also preparing for another trial in California amid the growing litigation over the impact of social media platforms on young people.
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