E-Business
Microsoft Builds Media Capacity on Office 365, Windows 8.1
Microsoft Nigeria exposed journalists to benefits of Microsoft Office 365 and Microsoft Windows 8.1 at a one-day capacity building training for the Nigeria IT media.
The training was held by Microsoft in conjunction with its Gold certified partner, Ha-Shem Network Services Limited, also known for its world class IT solutions and training.
Office 365 is a major offering within Office 2013 which is the next iteration of Microsoft’s flagship office product line for customers and is designed to work with both touch and a mouse, and works seamlessly in the cloud, giving the user an unmatched on- and offline experience.
A cloud service designed for busy households and people juggling ever-increasing work and family responsibilities, the Office 365 Home Premium includes the latest and most complete set of Office applications; works across up to five devices, including Windows tablets, PCs and Macs; and comes with extra SkyDrive storage and Skype calling.
Microsoft Windows 8.1 brings significant advantages to those who are upgrading existing PCs or purchasing new ones and comes with a new look. The operating system offers improvements in performance and existing capabilities.
To address challenges of weak technology reporting in the African media which is unstructured and shallow, and to bridge journalists’ reporting skills gap, Microsoft aims to provide local journalists with the tools they require to enable them report confidently on ICT issues, use technology properly in their day-to-day activities and create an affinity to the Microsoft brand and its solutions and services.
More than 20 journalists drawn from major media houses in Nigeria participated in the capacity building workshop.
Explaining motivation for the programme, Yemi Orimolade, PR Lead for Microsoft Anglophone West Africa said, “As a technology enabler, we believe IT capacity building contributes significantly to economic empowerment, growth and development, and will offer the appropriate skills to the media to use technology in innovative ways”.
Professor Lai Oso, Dean School of Communications at the Lagos State University , Lagos gave a keynote address on Bridging the gap between Technology & News Reporting.
According to him, audiences have moved away from being consumers of news to news producers as a result of latest trends in the technological landscape. Journalism in turn has moved away from the way it used to be and there is hardly any traditional media without an online version.
“Migration from the offline environment to the online has made it important to always update stories. New technologies create challenges and opportunities and yesterday’s skills and technology are fast becoming obsolete,” he said.
The workshop course content included Big data, One note, Antipiracy, Social media, Understanding Cloud Computing and Windows 8 & Office 365 experience.
The session on big data was facilitated by the duo of Marcus Stephens and Craig Corte of Kagiso Media. Marcus spoke on how data can be applied from a technological perspective for depth, frequency and reach.
“Though technology may change the way we communicate, it will not change the essence of communication,” Stephens submitted.
The session on Microsoft One Note was taken by Azubuike Nwajagu, IT Manager, Microsoft West East and Central Africa & Indian Ocean Islands. He said “Microsoft One Note is an effective tool for recording, collating and sharing notes. OneNote is particularly advantageous to journalists as it enables audio and video recording which is useful for recording interviews. The tool also enables interview transcription and allows for sharing of notes via email’.
The antipiracy session taken by Temofe Ugbona, Antipiracy Conversion manager, Microsoft Nigeria was a very interactive one, where he stressed that piracy is a problem of the whole world, not just Nigeria and is projected to be worth $7.4b by 2014.”
“Social media has become increasingly popular with the growth of social networking as a channel of communication. The use of blog posts and social networking sites have become major media for sharing information, videos and pictures. There are over two million Nigerians on Facebook and YouTube has been rated the second largest search engine in the world,” said Kendra Nnachi who facilitated the session on social media.
Yomi Alarape anchored the session on cloud computing, where he gave insights on datacenter evolution through the traditional, virtualization, private cloud and public could, while the Windows 8.1 and Office 365 experience session facilitated by Bamikole Ajayi, where participants were able to touch, feel, play and have hands-on experience with devices operating on the Windows 8.1 platform.
Giving his thoughts on the training, Abiodun Ogunjobi, Head Marketing, Ha-Shem Network Services Limited said, “We are excited to partner with Microsoft on this maiden edition of the journalist capacity building training project for the Nigerian media. The benefits of IT education cannot be overemphasized and we feel this is a good way to positively impact their reporting to be at par with the advanced world journalism.”
Participating journalists commended the continuous efforts of Microsoft and Ha-Shem Network Services Limited at encouraging technology penetration as well as personal growth of their partners.
Adeyemi Adepetun of The Guardian Newspaper speaking on behalf of the journalists said, “We thank Microsoft for this opportunity. It has been a very enlightening experience. We now have better understanding of Microsoft software packages and the opportunities that exist in online and social media as effective communication channels. IT skills are certainly a prerequisite for future achievement”.
Participants came from various media houses such as Nigeria CommunicationsWeek, The Punch Newspapers, The Guardian Newspaper, ThisDay Newspaper, Champion Newspapers, BusinessDay Newspaper, National Mirror, The Sun and Vanguard Newspapers amongst others.
Certificates of participation were given to all the journalists at the end of the one-day workshop.
Dr Adebowale Adedokun, director-general, Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), has reaffirmed the bureau’s commitment to data protection in Nigeria.
He disclosed this in a statement at the weekend by Zira Nagga, head of Public Relations, BPP, following a courtesy visit by a delegation from the National Data Protection Commission (NDPC).
Adedokun stressed that data protection is vital to Nigeria’s economy and development, particularly in areas such as demography, health, education, and other key sectors.
He emphasised that no country should leave its data unprotected, as it plays a crucial role in future planning and national development.
“Data governs the world. It is essential to technological progress and must be protected for a country or business to be taken seriously,” he said.
Adedokun described the visit, aimed at fostering partnership on data policy implementation and protection, as timely and aligned with national goals.
He said the BPP would collaborate closely with the NDPC to boost data development, capacity building, and enhance the procurement system.
“The BPP will support compliance as part of the ‘Nigeria First’ Policy, although it is not a core procurement eligibility requirement,” he explained.
He suggested a hybrid training model to help build strong capacity in data protection, privacy awareness, and policy understanding.
According to him, a dynamic training approach will reduce logistics costs and improve public confidence in data safety and privacy.
Dr Vincent Olatunji, CEO, and national commissioner, NDPC, praised Adedokun and the BPP for supporting data protection initiatives.
He said the partnership supports President Bola Tinubu’s vision and will strengthen data privacy across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).
“The collaboration will create awareness and train BPP staff to ensure a firm grasp of data protection principles and policies,” he stated.
Olatunji said the NDPC would establish a working group to finalise a Memorandum of Understanding beneficial to both institutions.
He added that President Tinubu signed the NDPC into law on 12 June 2023 to uphold citizens’ rights and protect national and business data.
Olatunji also noted that strict legal measures were in place to enforce data protection and ensure full compliance nationwide.
Both agencies agreed to form a team to sign the MoU and focus on capacity building and data management in procurement and beyond.
President Bola Tinubu said that his administration has initiated a project to install fibre optic cables across the country, aimed at enhancing the socio-economic development of Nigeria.
His plans were contained in a speech he delivered at a joint session of the National Assembly in commemoration of Democracy Day on Thursday, June 12.
He said the fibre optic layout is part of other projects being embarked on.
“In addition, we have embarked on an ambitious project to lay fibre optic cables across the nation, a transformative step toward bridging the digital divide and fostering greater connectivity.
“This initiative promises not only to enhance the speed and reliability of internet access but also to revolutionise how businesses operate, how students learn, and how communities stay connected,” Tinubu stated.
He maintained that by extending this critical infrastructure, his government is empowering entrepreneurs, enabling digital education, and providing the tools for our youth to compete in a globalised world.
In a most recent report on Internet connectivity, The ICIR pointed out how Nigeria has faced setbacks in its deployment of fibre optic cables and needs a transformation.
The challenges revolve around vandalism, inadequate coordination between road construction and telecom infrastructure, and varying right-of-way (RoW) charges across states.
Among industry experts, these issues impact network outages, increase repair costs, and hinder broadband expansion efforts.
It has also further threatened the digital economy, leading to slower Internet speeds, dropped calls, and unreliable connectivity among others.
African startups raised more than $345 million across 65 deals in May, more than double the amount raised in the same period of last year, according to a report by Briter, a research and business intelligence firm.
The report disclosed that both the number of deals and participating companies declined, confirming a growing trend of fewer companies raising funds in larger sizes.
It said fintech attracted the highest share of funding in May, accounting for 34 percent of the total, while cleantech followed closely, driven by a debt deal from Sun King. The company raised $80 million (in local currency) to expand clean energy access in Nigeria.
“Equity remains the primary instrument in terms of total value. There’s no doubt about it; in fact, equity deals with disclosed amounts captured more than half of the total funding volume in May.
“However, debt financing is increasingly proving its weight. Although it accounted for only 8 percent of all deals, it represented 32 percent of the total funding, highlighting the typically larger size of debt transactions. With the rise of specialised vehicles targeting early-stage businesses, debt is becoming an increasingly important part of Africa’s innovation funding landscape,” it said.
Briter’s report added that grants continued to play a vital role in early-stage support, especially in the education technology (EdTech) sector. The Mastercard Foundation led the pack in grant activity, funding a new cohort of EdTech innovators in Nigeria and Kenya. Each selected startup is set to receive $100,000 in grant funding, in addition to mentorship and business development support.
Multilaterals also made a strong showing in May, it said. The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), a World Bank Group member, issued a $179.6 million guarantee to CleanTech firm KOKO Networks. The support will help scale its clean energy solutions across Kenya.
“This deal not only demonstrates growing international confidence in African climate ventures but also signals a promising pathway for other asset-intensive startups in clean cooking, agriculture, and renewable energy,” the report said.
From a geographic perspective, Egypt emerged as the continent’s fundraising powerhouse for the month, contributing 51 percent of all funding raised. The country recorded 12 deals across equity, debt, and bond instruments. Notably, FinTech platform MNT-Halan raised $50 million through a bond issuance, further illustrating the diversification of capital-raising mechanisms in the region.
Outside Egypt, funding was distributed across Africa’s three other key markets, which are Egypt, Nigeria, and Kenya, with limited activity recorded in countries such as Ghana, Tunisia, Morocco, and Uganda, each registering between one and three deals.
In terms of exits, the African tech landscape continues to mature. Three companies—Baobab+, Qardy, and Shopa—were acquired in May, bringing the total number of exits this year to 22. This already surpasses last year’s count for the same period. Qardy was acquired by Catalyst Partners Middle East (CPME) in a disclosed deal valued at $23 million, the report added.
CBN Suspends Dividend, Bonus Payments for Banks under Forbearance
Elumelu, UBA Chair Seeks Digital Sovereignty for Africa
Court Orders Lawyer to Produce “Bail-Jumping” Client in MTN Cyber Fraud Case
MultiChoice Reportedly Testing Weekly Subscriptions amid Use Decline
FG Urges Private Sector to Invest in Africa’s Space Future
E-Financial2 days agoSterling Bank Pledges ₦2bn to Fully Fund University Scholarships
Telecom2 days agoMTN Nigeria Unveils CPaaS Platform to Transform Business Communication
E-Financial9 hours agoFidelity Bank ED, Kevin Ugwuoke takes over as President of Risk Managers Association
News2 days agoChina Expands Zero-Tariff Trade for Nigeria, 52 Other African Nations
General News9 hours agoAirtel Concludes Nationwide Environment Week with Market Clean-Up by Employees
General News9 hours agoCourt Orders Lawyer to Produce “Bail-Jumping” Client in MTN Cyber Fraud Case
Broadcasting9 hours agoMultichoice Nigeria Faces Revenue Decline Amid Economic Challenges
E-Financial9 hours agoCBN Suspends Dividend, Bonus Payments for Banks under Forbearance