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Minister Says Nigeria Must Act Fast to Catch up with New Technology
Federal Ministry of Education says there is an urgent need for Nigeria to catch up with the fast pace of technological advancement in order to remain relevant in the comity of nations.
Prof. Anthony Anwukah, Minister of State for Education, said this at the inauguration of UNITes CiSCO “Internet of Things’’ innovation centre at the Federal Science and Technical College (FSTC) Yaba yesterday in Lagos.
The `Internet of Things’ (IoT), refers to the ever-growing network of physical objects with IP address for internet connectivity and communication that occurs between them and other internet-enable devices.
“We are in a world where we are running a race with technology and as it is today, human beings are almost being relegated to the background by robots.
“Today, technology has taken over as most of the jobs being done in developed countries are being done by robots and if care is not taken, in the next 20 years, almost all humans will be out of jobs.
“However, our hope still remains that technology is man’s creation, we can always make computers subject to human dictates.
“ We must strive to rise up to the various challenges thrown to us by technology and strive to move with the trend, otherwise, we find ourselves on the feet of comity of nations,’’ he said.
Anwukah noted that the internet has come to stay, as it is entrenching itself as a basic commodity that Nigerians cannot do without if the country was to be in the forefront of technological changes in the fast changing world.
According to him, it is imperative that the nation embraces the IoT innovation as well as consciously make efforts to bring about changes in a digitized form.
He added that the IoT was also expected to be effective even in the teaching and learning system.
Anwukah noted that the Federal government had made deliberate investments in the area of Science and Technological development through education.
“It is therefore needful to state here that no effort is enough and thus, collaborative efforts are welcomed so as to achieve gains in the area.
“In the zeal of this amazing feat, it is usually anticipated that the students and teachers alike will take advantage of the benefits the centre will offer, thus, also encourage all to ensure that the aim of this project is not thrown over board.
“I want to thank UNITes CISCO for their efforts in partnering with the Federal government to move the nation to greater heights in technology,’’ he said.
He assured that government would consider the replication of the centre in its technical colleges and Federal Universities of Technology across the country.
Mr Tayo Olatayo, initiator and Chief Executive, UNITes CISCO, said that the objective of the IoT centre was to digitalize both the communities and the homes.
According to him, the centre will seek to create technology solutions that will unlock opportunities at a speed of rapid prototyping as well as showcase what is possible with digital transformation and IoT.
He said that it would also raise a new generation of technology creators who would become problem solvers and job creators.
Olatayo said that it would also help local and global organizations improve business outcomes by making the most of smart data and digitalization.
He added that the UNITes CISCO Networking Academy has concluded arrangements to establish a network of IoT innovation centres in Secondary Schools and Universities across the country.
Earlier in his address, Rev. Chris Ugorji, Principal of the college said that the innovation was an intelligent connection of things where a community or an environment would become completely digitalized.
He noted that elsewhere in the developed world, a lot of innovations in technology were being deployed in a number of activities such as control of erosion, fighting poverty as well as arresting climate changes.
“Today is a memorable day in the history of this school because UNITes CISCO has opened this innovation centre in FSTC and it is particularly remarkable because our school is the first in sub-Saharan Africa to have an IoT centre.
“Therefore, our teachers and students will not only be global community of problem solvers but also IoT creators,’’ Ugorji said.
CommunicationsWeek Media Limited, a certified global ICT company with over two million online subscribers, is delighted and proud to announce Prof. Yakub Aliyu, as the keynote speaker at Africa’s Beacon of ICT Merit and Leadership Distinguished Lecture series 2024.
Aliyu, will be speaking on the theme: Artificial Intelligence (AI): The Good, The Complex and The Anticipated”, this leans heavily on the fact that AI changing our lives– we just need to know where to look today.
This year’s rebranded Africa’s Beacon of ICT Merit and Leadership Distinguished Lecture/Awards Series is slated for Saturday, May 25, 2024 at the Four Points by Sheraton, Lagos.
The event is the most prestigious annual event that brings together captains of industry in both technology and financial worlds.
According to Ken Nwogbo, CEO, Communication Week Media Ltd, organisers of the ABoICT Distinguished Lecture/Awards Series, “the choice of Prof. Yakub Aliyu is deliberate because of his exceptional career in Artificial Intelligence (AI)”.
He added that, AI is considered to have the potential to instigate a fourth industrial revolution,1 and is dramatically changing people’s patterns of interaction and economic activities.
“The traditional factors of production and physical capital and labour may no longer promote substantial economic growth. It is generally believed that AI will be one of the most important factors determining future economic growth,” he said.
A professor of microelectronics and a scholar-practitioner in artificial intelligence and deep machine learning for industrial applications and high-speed application processors. His research interests include Multimodal AI models for high-efficiency industrial robot applications and Human AI interactions.
He also has adjunct academic professorships at five African, USA, and UK universities. Holds a BS in Applied Physics Electronics from Karlsruhe and A Bello Universities in Germany and Nigeria, an MBA in International Business Management from the University of London, an MSEE (Master of Engineering, Electronics), and a Ph.D. in Electronics Engineering from the University of Wales.
Prof. Aliyu is the global quality director for Bourns Inc., Riverside, California, USA, an electronics system, and components manufacturer. I oversee quality functions in 21 factories worldwide.
He has also held quality and operational management leadership positions at National Semiconductors, Bell Labs-Lucent Technology, Texas Instrument, Global Foundries, and Roper Technologies USA.
Authored and coauthored over 30 Advanced Technology United States-issued patents in High-Speed Application Processors and Contributed to over 40 international impact Journals, chapters, and conferences; FASI, SMIEEE USA, MIEE UK, M. Inst pf Physics Chartered Phys and C Eng UK.
Past lecturers included Dr. Ernest Ndukwe, then executive vice chairman, Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC); Engr. Yomi Bolarinwa, former Director-General of National Broadcasting Commission (NBC); Dr. Jean Luc Fort, CEO at OR System France and a specialist in Counterparty Risk; and Professor Chris Nwagboso, Chairman, Knowledge Factory International, United Kingdom.
Others are: Uche Orji, managing director/chief executive officer, Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA); Biodu Omoniyi, Managing Director/CEO, VDT Communications; Ayotunde Coker, Managing Director, Rack Centre Limited; Peter Adedayo Arogundade, managing director and chief executive officer, Sidmach Technologies Nigeria Limited; Dr. Adewale Obadare, chief visionary officer, Digital Encode and John Obaro, CEO and founder of Systemspecs; Prof. Isa Pantanmi, minister of Communications and Digital Economy; Dr. Seyi Akindeind, co-founder, Digital Encode; Dr Krishnan Ranganath, Regional Director, Africa Data Centres.
Legit.ng recently joined forces with the Shade of Life Foundation to become a voice of autism, and drive advocacy for improved media support during Autism Awareness Month.
Participants at the event
Conversations around media support exploration was led by Joseph Omotayo, head of Department for Human Interest Stories at Legit.ng, and Dr. Eziafakaku Nwokolo, founder and CEO of the Shade of Life Foundation,
This partnership is a response to the concerns raised by organizations like the Shade of Life Foundation about the level of support received from the media in discussing autism as a disability.
While other disabilities may receive attention, autism, with its critical developmental implications often lacks adequate representation in mainstream media.
Recognizing the importance of addressing these concerns, Legit.ng took proactive steps by integrating itself into the essence of autism awareness.
It facilitated a one-hour workshop with Dr. Nwokolo, the founder of the foundation, to deepen our understanding of autism, its various spectrums, and the language boundaries associated with it.
Other steps we took in advocating autism awareness in the media, can be seen in our attached press release.
Legit.ng believes that by amplifying the voices of autism and advocating for better media representation, we can contribute to creating a more inclusive and accepting society for all.
While 85 per cent of Nigeria is in darkness, Tanzania, an African country has shut down five hydroelectric stations in a bid to reduce excess electricity in the national grid.
Kassim Majaliwa, prime minister, Tanzania, has said the main plant, Mwalimu Nyerere Hydroelectric Station, alone generated enough electricity to power major cities, including Dar es Salaam, the country’s commercial hub.
It is the first time Tanzania, which suffers chronic power shortages, has closed hydroelectric stations due to excess production.
“We have turned off all these stations because the demand is low and the electricity production is too much, we have no allocation now,” an official from state-run power company, Tanesco, said.
The 2,115MW Julius Nyerere Hydropower Dam is said to be almost filled with water following heavy rains that started early this year.
Meanwhile, while the country has an installed capacity of 1,938MW and the grid installed capacity of 1,899MW, Nigeria which has an installed capacity of 13,000MW is struggling to electrify 85 per cent of its electricity consumers.
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