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NCS Commends Uwaje for NITMA Concept

The Nigeria Computer Society (NCS), has recognized Chris Uwaje as the Originator and concept framework designer of the National Information Technology Merit Award (NITMA).
There comes a time in life when truth prevails, merit acknowledged and honour restored. Today, NITMA remains the most distinguished brand of the Nigeria Computer Society – towering above all other initiatives of NCS.
Without gainsaying the fact and diluting the narratives of the Nigerian Information Technology Development Ecosystem, Chris Uwaje stands out as perhaps one of the greatest Icon of IT-Nigeria.
Uwaje is blessed with the inalienable foresight and knack to see the Future-of-Things (FoT) in IT and drive it’s conceptual objectives and values to fusion. No wonder he is known and called “The Oracle” of IT Nigeria. His articulated and spoken words seem to be and indeed acknowledged as law within the IT Ecosystem.
He conceptualizes it, presents the architecture, proof of concept and processes which ultimately becomes the standard! For example Uwaje Pioneered the National IT Policy that led to the establishment of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) in 2001. The NITDA nomenclature was defined and written by him and remains unchanged till today.
Not only that, in 1999 he transformed Computer Vendors’ Association of Nigeria (COVAN) into Information Technology Association of Nigeria (ITAN) which equally remains unchanged to date.
Uwaje went on to deliver the Institute of Software Practitioners of Nigeria (ISPON 1999-2019) as Co-Founder and Past-President. The ISPON brand of the Nigeria Software Ecosystem remains a distinguished brand. Uwaje’s passion to promote IT Nigeria into the world space is limitless and knows no bounds.
His architectural framework for the establishment of the National IT Merit Award and National IT Policy respectively speaks volumes and constitute an immense Intellectual Property (IP) that has propelled the development of the Nigeria IT Ecosystem – and by extention, Africa beyond superlative imagination. Against all odds, Uwaje is also acclaimed as having crafted the original document that established the Nigerian Women in Information Technology Group under NCS.
It is on record that Uwaje single-handedly designed and structured NITMA to life in 2003 but it took another 5 years (2008) before NCS approved the vision and commenced implementation in 2010.
Today, after 16 years into the history of NITMA, NCS has finally recognized the valuable work of Uwaje and bestowed him with a distinguished Award at the recently concluded NCS International Conference in Gombe.
Uwaje also pioneered the National Software (Hackathon) Competition, an annual ritual in Tinapa Cross-River State, Akwa Ibom SIT policy and many others.
Uwaje, by all impressionable standards is not retiring soon. Recently he was nominated as Africa Chair for IEEE Global Internet of Things (GIoT). He is Chair to many IT missions in Nigeria, Africa and the world. Perhaps, it is time for the Federal Government of Nigeria to honour Chris Uwaje – The Oracle – for his incredible pioneering works and services for the development of the Information Technology Development Ecosystem of Nigeria.
News
GSK to Slash Cost of Malaria Jab to Less than $5

The manufacturers of the world’s first malaria vaccine are set to slash the price by more than half by 2028 to less than$5 per dose.
The manufacturers of the shot, known as RTS,S, said a phased reduction in cost would begin immediately, with an ultimate aim to reduce the price to less than $5.
The announcement could hardly come at a more critical moment.
Gavi, a major vaccination initiative which funds immunisations in the world’s poorest countries, is facing a major budget crunch.
In Brussels on Wednesday, Gavi’s replenishment event raised $9 billion to fund immunisation programmes over the next five years. While this sounds like a huge sum, it’s significantly less than the $11.9bn the group had been aiming for.
Governments around the world are cutting development spending dramatically.
The UK, for instance, cut its contribution to Gavi by 40 per cent in real terms, telling The Telegraph it was prioritising defence, while the US has pledged nothing at all.
Though America previously gave Gavi roughly $300m a year, the country’s new health secretary claimed without evidence that the organisation was ignoring vaccine safety.
The announcement from the British pharmaceutical giant GSK and Indian drugmaker Bharat Biotech will therefore be a relief to those trying to balance the books.
In a statement the companies said the price reduction demonstrated their “commitment to Gavi”, and was “driven by process improvements, expanded production capacity, cost-effective manufacturing, and minimal profit margins”.
By the time the price has fallen to below $5 per dose, a technology transfer agreement means Bharat will have taken over production, though GSK will continue to supply the adjuvant piece of the shot.
“For us, this is more than a cooperation, it’s a promise,” said Dr Krishna Ella, executive chairman of Bharat Biotech International Limited.
“By joining forces with GSK, and working closely with Gavi, and the WHO [World Health Organization], we are taking a real step toward closing the gap between vaccine supply and the urgent needs of children at risk of malaria.”
Each year, malaria still kills 500,000 people – the vast majority of them children aged five and under in sub-Saharan Africa.
According to WHO estimates, cases and deaths fell significantly between 2000 and 2015, but progress has since stalled.
Some have high hopes that RTS,S, as well as another vaccine called R21 developed by Oxford University, could prove critical in efforts to turn the tide.
In clinical trials, RTS,S reduced hospitalisations for severe malaria by 30 per cent.
But critics say the shot is too expensive and not as effective as existing tools, such as bed nets and antimalarials.
The reduction in price will bring it more in line with the cost of R21, which is priced at around $4 per dose.
Yet the cost will still add up, as both jabs require multiple shots. For RTS,S, this means four doses – the first three doses are given monthly, starting around five months of age, while the fourth dose is administered 15-18 months later.
Both jabs “provide reasonable short term efficacy – over about a year – so are a useful addition to other measures,” said Professor Nick White, a professor at the Mahidol-Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit who specialises in malaria.
“In the past GSK had limited production capacity – one of the reasons the R21 was developed. So reducing the price will be good and the two comparable vaccines can fight it out in the market place.”
A spokesperson for Gavi said the alliance’s goal is to “create sustainable demand backed by predictable financing so that companies – like GSK and Bharat – can continue investing in technology transfer and other efficiencies that bring down costs, thus making critical vaccines more available and affordable.
GSK’s decision to lower its prices, the spokesperson added, is “an important step for the global malaria vaccination programme, and our ability to make this lifesaving tool more widely available to those who need it the most”.
Gavi plans to help fund RTS,S in 12 African countries by the end of this year.
Previously, GSK has said it will supply up to 18 million vaccine doses between 2023 and the end of this year.
The company plans to supply 15 million doses annually from 2026-2028, a spokesperson told Reuters.
News
Rack Centre Signs Collocation Deal with TelCables Nigeria

Rack Centre, West Africa’s Tier III carrier- and cloud-neutral data centre, has struck a collocation agreement with TelCables Nigeria, an Angola Cables subsidiary.
TelCables Nigeria is delivering its high-capacity network and cloud infrastructure, as well as four international subsea cable systems (SACS, MONET, SEBRAS, and EllaLink), directly into Rack Centre’s regional carrier ecosystem as part of the agreement.
According to Angola Cables, the move provides reliable, low-latency south-bound routes to Europe, the Americas, and Latin America, reducing the danger of future cable disruptions along West Africa’s coast and enabling next-generation cloud services across the continent.
“Our unique Africa – to – Latin America route via SACS, combined with MONET, SEBRAS and EllaLink, gives customers the lowest – latency paths to the Americas and Europe,” said Fernando Fernandes, CEO of TelCables Nigeria.
“Businesses in latency sensitive sectors: financial services, content delivery and real-time communications will experience faster transactions, reduced lag and an enhanced user experience.
“By hosting at Rack Centre we also localise Clouds2Africa resources, price them in naira, and remove expensive ingress/egress charges or FX exposure.”
Rack Centre said its 13.5MW data centre campus designed with its recently launched LGS2 facility that delivers a design PUE of 1.35 and powered from sustainable energy sources, already hosts 70+ carriers, ISPs and network operators.
Lars Johannisson, CEO of Rack Centre, commented: “Adding a global operator of Angola Cables’ calibre through TelCables Nigeria dramatically deepens our connectivity fabric.
“We can now offer 99.95 % SLA routes to more destinations, enabling enterprises, governments and cloud providers to meet performance and data-residency requirements while keeping traffic local.”
News
Lagos Plastic Ban: MAN Warns of Job Losses, Closure of Businesses

Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has expressed concerns over the impending ban on Single-Use Plastics (SUPs) by the Lagos State Ministry of Environment.
It warned that it could lead to job losses and and lead to economic, operational, and social consequences for manufacturers, traders, recyclers, and end users.
Segun Ajayi-Kadir, director general, MAN, in a statement called on the Lagos State government to reconsider the ban, citing a lack of credible data and stakeholder engagement.
According to Ajayi-Kadir, a recent study revealed that 100% of manufacturers surveyed expressed fears of job losses and workforce restructuring if the ban is implemented.
He said, “A recent MAN-supported study evaluating the possible impacts of the Lagos State SUPs ban revealed significant adverse economic, operational, and social implications across the value chain, from manufacturers to wholesalers, traders, and end users. It has been noted that only poor and developing countries often tilt towards plastic ban as a strategy to combat environmental problems.
“A hundred percent of the manufacturers consulted expressed concern over a ban-induced workforce restructuring. Thus, several jobs will be lost in the industry if this ban were to be implemented.
“It is noteworthy to mention that there is no form of arrangement for social protection for the employees who will lose their livelihoods as a result of this ban.
“Also, there has been no form of social dialogue on the part of the government with these workers or the industry on the potential job losses.”
According to him, findings showed that 89% of operators in the plastic value chain rely on SUPs as their primary source of income with no alternative source of livelihoods, over 75% of end users, including SMEs, depend on plastic packaging with no affordable or practical alternatives, and 93% of dealers, many of whom are women, reported no prior information or social support mechanisms to cushion the impact.
Ajayi-Kadir emphasised that banning SUPs would not resolve pollution issues but merely substitute one problem for another, especially without scalable alternatives or infrastructure to support the transition.
He urged the government to focus on improving waste management infrastructure and promoting recycling, rather than imposing bans.
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