E-Business
Microsoft Survey Reveals Top Three Skills Students Require for Future Workplace

Microsoft has released the findings from a new education survey of nearly 50 educators in Nigeria, in which they expressed the challenges and opportunities in optimizing technology for the classroom as well as the skill sets required to succeed.
The survey commissioned by Microsoft, and conducted by Market research firm YouGov, was shared at the annual BETT Middle East 2017 event held in Abu Dhabi, on April 25-26 and brought together over 1600 leading educators from across the region. BETT (British Education and Training Technology) has established itself as a global meeting place for the education technology community.
Through its ongoing series of world-class events, it continues to promote the discovery of technology and knowledge to enhance lifelong learning.
Educators from Nigeria were also present at BETT Middle East 2017 led by the Education Programs Manager for Microsoft Nigeria, Jordan Belmonte.
Educators in Nigeria see themselves as highly tech-proficient and believe they should lead the transformation in the classroom.
They are most interested in apps that help coordinate teaching materials. The findings revealed that 90% educators said they believe their school leaders have a clear vision of how to use technology for the enhancement of the classroom experience.
54% of educators reported that technology was used in their institution; and a 64% majority said problem-solving was a key skill required by students.
When addressing the absence of technology as it impacted the student body, 46% believed students will be they will be disadvantaged in terms of entrepreneurship opportunities
However, 54% educators surveyed lacked proper understanding about technology implementation and integration into the way they teach.
The study revealed that the biggest factor needed to successfully transform teaching and learning experiences was educator skill sets – in particular, knowing how to make the most of available resources and tools.
“Over several decades, Microsoft has worked with institutions and educators around the world, and gained a deep understanding of how technology in schools can transform the learning experience,” said Anthony Salcito, Vice President, Worldwide Education, Microsoft Corporation. “We continue to bring our leading-edge products, services and programs to bear on this challenge, always taking into account that technology is not the lone agent in such transformations, and can even complicate or slow down the process if not implemented with due diligence. We recommend that education leaders take a curriculum-focused approach to technology adoption, keeping in mind their educational goals, and then integrate those technologies that facilitate tangible benefits for students and teachers.”
“Lack of digital proficiency is the biggest challenge facing the youth, especially in the Middle East. It is crucial to take the steps for equipping educators with the right tools and providing them with trainings that will help address the technological challenges in the classroom; empowering students with key 21st-century skills to deliver immense change, ”Said, Jordan Belmonte, Education Programs Manager, Microsoft Nigeria.
The company’s collaboration with BETT, introduced educators in the Middle East and beyond to generational leaps in classroom-enhancing technologies and methodologies. Delegates were able to attend Microsoft Teacher Development Track, the School Leaders Track and the Education Digital Transformation Track to unlock fresh approaches with tools such as Office Mix, “Creative Coding through Games and Apps”, and drive improvement within their own schools and systems.
In addition to its in-depth tracks, Microsoft along with its partners also demonstrated its latest solutions and devices to enable digital transformation in classrooms.
The company also imparted some of its expertise on device management, covering Windows 10, the Microsoft Educator’s Community and Office 365 Education.
Bett, a leading global education technology exhibition and congress series, wrapped up its second Leadership Summit and Expo in the Middle East on April 26.
With significant involvement from regional and international governmental entities, as well as renowned speakers from education bodies and organizations, the two-day event aimed to promote transformational technology for classroom solutions, whilst connecting people, ideas and practices to enhance lifelong learning within the region.
E-Business
Transcorp Hotels Delivers Stellar H1 Results, Declares Over ₦1Bn Dividend

Transcorp Hotels Plc has delivered a stellar performance in the first half of 2025, recording a 60% year-on-year surge in revenue to ₦47.57 billion, up from ₦29.72 billion in H1 2024. Gross profit climbed 71% to ₦36.21 billion, maintaining a strong 76% margin despite inflation and operational headwinds.
The hospitality giant, a subsidiary of Transnational Corporation Plc, also announced an interim dividend payout of ₦1.024 billion — offering ₦0.10 per 50 kobo ordinary share to shareholders.
In a bold move, the company unveiled Nigeria’s largest corporate venue — the 5,000-seat Transcorp Centre — staking its claim as the new leader in event hospitality. Chairman Emmanuel Nnorom described the results as proof of Transcorp Hotels’ transformative strategies and unwavering investor commitment. MD/CEO Uzo Oshogwe attributed the success to relentless execution and a resilient business model.
Transcorp Hotels, renowned for iconic assets like Transcorp Hilton Abuja and its digital platform Aura, says it isn’t just leading Nigeria’s hospitality sector — it’s redefining excellence across Africa.
E-Business
Microsoft Servers Hacked by Chinese Groups

Chinese “threat actors” have hacked Microsoft’s SharePoint document software servers and targeted the data of the businesses using it, the firm has said.
China state-backed Linen Typhoon and Violet Typhoon as well as China-based Storm-2603 were said to have “exploited vulnerabilities” in on-premises SharePoint servers, the kind used by firms, but not in its cloud-based service.
The US tech giant has released security updates in response and has advised all on-premises SharePoint server customers to install them.
“Investigations into other actors also using these exploits are still ongoing,” Microsoft said in a statement.
The firm said it had “high confidence” the hackers would continue to target systems which have not installed its security updates.
It added that it would update its website blog with more information as its investigation continues.
Microsoft said it had observed attacks in which hackers had sent a request to a SharePoint server “enabling the theft of the key material by threat actors”.
Charles Carmakal, chief technology officer at Mandiant Consulting firm, a division of Google Cloud, told reporter, it was “aware of several victims in several different sectors across a number of global geographies”.
Carmakal said it appeared that governments and businesses that use SharePoint on their sites were the primary target.
A number of adversaries who stole material encoded by cryptography were then able to regain ongoing access to the victims’ SharePoint data, he said.
“This was exploited in a very broad way, very opportunistically before a patch was made available. That’s why this is significant,” Carmakal said.
Carmakal said the “China-nexus actor” was deploying techniques similar to previous campaigns associated with Beijing.
Microsoft said Linen Typhoon had “focused on stealing intellectual property, primarily targeting organizations related to government, defence, strategic planning, and human rights” for 13 years.
It added that Violet Typhoon had been “dedicated to espionage”, primarily targeting former government and military staff, non-governmental organizations, think tanks, higher education, the media, the financial sector and the health sector in the US, Europe, and East Asia.
Meanwhile, Storm-2603 was “assessed with medium confidence to be a China-based threat actor”.
E-Business
NIMC Warns Nigerians of Fake NIN Website

National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has issued a public warning that it is not associated with NINcard.com.
According to the commission, the website has been circulating online to offer services for Nigerians seeking National Identification Number (NIN) services.
NIMC, in a post on its official X account on Wednesday, said, “NINcard.com is not in anyway affiliated to NIMC. Stay vigilant!”
The warning was accompanied by screenshots of fake payment receipts and OTP request pages from the website, both of which were boldly stamped “FAKE” by NIMC to alert the public.
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