Telecom
NCC Sensitises Students on Safer Internet Practice
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has joined the rest of the world to celebrate the Africa Safer Internet Day (ASID), which is the continent’s version of the World Safer Internet Day (WSID), held on February 9 every year.
In marking the Africa Safer Internet Day 2021, with the theme “Positioning and Partnering for Child Online Protection”, NCC’s representatives visited secondary schools in Abuja and Lagos to sensitise and educate students, on how they can use the internet productively, avoid being victims of all forms of cybercrime, and deal with cases of cyberbullying.
The schools include Model Secondary School, and Government Science Secondary School, both in Maitama, Abuja; and Kuramo Junior College and Victoria Island Junior Secondary School, both in Victoria Island, Lagos.
Addressing some of the students of Government Science Secondary School, Abuja, under strict observance of COVID-19 protocols, Tokunbo Oyeleye, Deputy Director, New Media and Information Security at NCC, stated that this year’s theme was in sync with one of the focus areas of NCC with respect to child online protection, noting that the a Commission constantly sensitises young Nigerians on cybersecurity and its applications.
“We are here, as NCC representatives, to educate you, the younger generation of Internet users on what you need to know to keep safe while online as part of our efforts to ensure child online protection in our country in the use of Information and Communication Technology,” Oyeleye said.
She further explained that the concern over child online protection should not be limited to arresting the perpetrators, but should be more of providing education and counselling that may assist in minimising the harm on younger Internet users.
Meanwhile, at the Lagos event, Nkechi Obiekwe, Controller, NCC Lagos Zonal Office, said the protection and safety of children while they access the internet is a shared responsibility. She added that internet penetration permeates every aspect of life and adoption of the internet presents opportunities for learning.
Earlier, in a presentation, Chioma Ibe, a Principal Manager in NCC, spoke on cyberbullying and signs to watch out for.
She also highlighted ways to resist online bullying and the importance of reporting cases of cyberbullying to relevant authorities.
“Online bullying can have a devastating impact on young people, whose online life is a key part of their identity and how they interact socially. Cyberbullying takes many forms, such as sending abusive messages, hurtful images or videos, nasty online gossip, excluding or humiliating others or creating fake accounts in someone’s name to trick or humiliate them,” Ibe said.
Also contributing to the discussion, Chukwuemeka Monyei, the Executive Director, Like-a-Palm-Tree Foundation, educated the students on how to mute conversation with, unfollow, block, and report anybody who engages in an act of cyberbullying toward them as a way of protecting themselves.
Oyeleye urged the students to share the knowledge they have gained during the programme with their friends and relatives towards ensuring a safer internet for all.
Pamphlets with salient printed information on child online protection, with emphasis on cyberbullying, were distributed to the students across the four schools.
The students, who participated in the intensive one-day sensitization, expressed delight for being part of such a highly educational programme and thanked the Commission for its leading role in online child protection.
In the wake of increasing geopolitical tension, Cassava Technologies has unveiled its National Sovereign Cloud offering for African governments.
The solution, the company claims, will help the continent’s governments ensure data is kept on infrastructure that remains under local legal and operational jurisdiction.
According to the official announcement, made yesterday, the solution provides “secure, locally-governed digital infrastructure that enables the deployment of AI-enabled public services”.
The overarching solution encompasses cloud, cyber security, AI computing infrastructure, as well as local language AI models and skills support for governments.
The announcement comes amid increasing uncertainty over the hosting of sensitive national data on cloud services operated by foreign hyperscalers, which are subject to legal frameworks, such as the U.S. CLOUD Act. The CLOUD Act opens the door to allow American authorities to access data stored on the servers of US hyperscalers, wherever those servers are physically located.
Cassava has claimed separately that currently, “approximately 33% to 45% of the world’s data is hosted in the USA”.
The company added: “A sovereign cloud reduces exposure to extraterritorial laws, improves cyber resilience, and ensures that model weights and training data for public AI remain under national custody.”
The Africa Data Centres Association’s 2026 Economic Report states that “data sovereignty has evolved from a legal aspiration into a strategic policy lever”.
Ahmed El Beheiry, Group COO and Group Chief Technology and AI Officer, Cassava Technologies said: “Across Africa, governments are accelerating their digital transformation agendas and are increasingly focused on ensuring that data and digital infrastructure remain secure and sovereign.”
Announced at the Mobile Word Congress in Barcelona, this week, the Sovereign Cloud offering launch accompanied the launch of Cassava’s Cloud Partner programme.
The partner programme targets mobile network operators and system integrators across Africa to resell and distribute AI, cloud, and other digital services using Cassava’s infrastructure and technology platforms.
El Beheiry added: “We are expanding Africa’s sovereign AI ecosystem to build solutions that address the continent’s unique challenges while creating new opportunities for growth and digital inclusion.”
The programme offers partners access to NVIDIA Cloud Partner solutions, Cassava’s AI Factory, its own native AI solutions and its AI Multi-Model Exchange, which supports both Anthropic’s Claude and Google’s Gemini models.
Mazen Mroue, a non-executive director at MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, has resigned effective February 27, 2026, to prioritise other responsibilities within the MTN Group, the company announced in a Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) filing.
MTN Nigeria
The notice, signed by company secretary Uto Ukpanah, stated: “This is to enable Mr. Mroue to focus on other priorities within MTN Group Limited. The Board wishes to express its appreciation to Mr. Mroue for his immense service to MTN Nigeria and wishes him success in his future endeavours.”
Mroue joined MTN Nigeria’s board on June 1, 2022, bringing over 28 years of telecom experience. A veteran MTN executive, he previously served as CEO of MTN Uganda and MTN Liberia, non-executive director at MTN Cyprus, and held leadership roles at MTN Ghana.
Since February 2022, he has been MTN Group’s Chief Technology and Information Officer, overseeing technology strategy and governance. Earlier, as MTN Nigeria’s COO from August 2018 to January 2022, he also sat on the MTN Nigeria Foundation board.
The exit follows MTN Nigeria’s stellar 2025 results, posting a ₦1.70 trillion profit before tax—reversing a ₦550.3 billion loss in 2024 driven by forex woes—marking one of the telco’s strongest rebounds.
Google has rolled out support for Yorùbá and Hausa languages in its AI-powered Search features—AI Overviews and AI Mode—enabling millions of Nigerians to get quick answers, summaries, and conversational web exploration in their mother tongues.
The update forms part of Google’s push to cover 13 African languages, including Afrikaans, Akan, Amharic, Kinyarwanda, Afaan Oromoo, Somali, Sesotho, Kiswahili, Setswana, Wolof, and isiZulu, selected based on high search activity across the continent.
Now, a Kano student can ask complex questions in Hausa, while an Ibadan trader seeks business tips in Yorùbá—both receiving culturally nuanced AI responses via text or voice on Android, iOS, or web.
Taiwo Kola-Ogunlade, Google’s West Africa Communications Manager, said: “Building truly global Search requires nuanced local understanding. With Gemini-powered AI, we’ve made advanced capabilities relevant in Yorùbá and Hausa, so Nigerians converse naturally with Search in their mother tongues.”
To use: Open the Google app, tap AI Mode, and query in Hausa or Yorùbá for personalised guidance—breaking language barriers and making technology reflect Nigeria’s diverse identity.
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