E-Business
NITDA, Microsoft Ink MoU for Local ICT Innovation, Adoption
The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and Microsoft Nigeria have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Innovation and adoption in the country.
The partnership will see both NITDA and Microsoft collaborate in ICT development, particularly in the areas of cloud policies, data protection and privacy laws and data classification frameworks.
NITDA mandate is to create a framework for the planning, research, development, standardization, application, coordination, monitoring, evaluation and regulation of Information Technology practices in Nigeria.
The Nigerian Government priorities include anti-corruption drive, security; private sector led economic growth and job creation, youth training and skills development. Technology will be at the heart of driving and building a digital economy which will bring these priorities to fruition.
Speaking on the collaboration, Dr. Isa Ali Ibrahim, NITDA’s director-general/CEO, said the agency is delighted to collaborate with Microsoft, saying “as regulators, our mandate is to create the right policies that foster innovation and help build a robust digital economy.
Nigeria is a forward-thinking economy and one which is ready to compete in the 4th industrial revolution by having policies which drive growth and encourage investments.”
He further added: “This is a positive move towards digitalization of government processes and provides a tremendous opportunity to scale up citizen’s access to services and concurrently improve the quality of services.”
Also reiterating on the collaboration, Akin Banuso, general manager, Microsoft Nigeria, said Microsoft is happy to collaborate with NITDA.
Banuso noted that Microsoft is committed to providing technology “you can trust; we have been actively involved in discussions with governments around the world to digitally transform are also frequently asked by other governments to identify best practices for moving to the cloud; we are honoured to be able to work with the Nigerian government on this framework.”
The Microsoft Nigeria boss said the collaboration aimed to foster detailed discussions of recent regulatory and policy development, including global best practices, to create cloud regulatory frameworks appropriate for driving innovation and improving how the public sector operates and delivers citizen services”
NITDA and Microsoft will set up a joint working group for the collaboration.
Gartner predicts that by 2028, 75 percent of enterprise software engineers will use Artificial Intelligence (AI) code assistants, up from less than 10 percent, currently.
According to a Gartner poll of 598 global respondents conducted in the third quarter of 2023, 63 percent of organisations are now testing, deploying, or have previously implemented AI code assistants.
AI code assistants provide for more capabilities than only code development and completion, notes the research firm.
According to Gartner, the use of AI code assistants can lead to higher work satisfaction and retention, resulting in lower turnover costs.
Philip Walsh, senior principal analyst at Gartner, comments: “Software engineering leaders must determine ROI and build a business case as they scale their rollouts of AI code assistants.
“However, traditional ROI frameworks steer engineering leaders toward metrics centred on cost reduction. This narrow perspective fails to capture the full value of AI code assistants.”
Gartner notes that software engineering leaders must “reframe the ROI conversation from cost reduction to value generations”.
Walsh adds: “Calculating time savings on code generation is a good place to begin building a more robust value story. To convey the full enterprise value story for AI code assistants, software engineering leaders should connect value enablers to impacts, and then analyse the overall return to the organisation.”
National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has said that the planned national ID card will be issued to applicants by their banks.
NIMC said it is working with the Nigerian Interbank Settlement System (NIBSS) to deliver the cards to applicants.
“The card will be issued through the applicants’ respective banks in line with existing protocols with the issuance of the Debit/Credit cards,” the agency said at the weekend update on its official X handle.
KEY FACTS ABOUT THE PROPOSED NEW GENERAL MULTIPURPOSE NATIONAL IDENTITY CARD
- The new National ID Card is a single, convenient, and General multipurpose card (GMPC) , eliminating the need for multiple cards—not three.
- The single GMPC has multiple use cases:…
— NIMC (@nimc_ng) April 12, 2024
It said applicants need to request their cards with their NIN “through the self-service online portal, NIMC offices, or their respective banks”.
“The card will be powered by the AFRIGO card scheme, an indigenous scheme powered by NIBSS,” NIMC said.
“The card can be picked up by holders at the designated center or delivered to the applicants at the requested location at an extra cost to be borne by the applicants,” the update read.
National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has said that the new national Identity card, powered by AfriGo Card, is a single card with multiple services.
NIMC made the clarification against the confusion and criticisms that have trailed the AfriGo Card , touted as a National Domestic Card Scheme.
NIMC is launching the AfriGo Card, in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigeria Inter-bank Settlement System (NIBSS), and has had appointed SecureID, a Lagos headquartered company to manufacture the Card Scheme
Making clarification on the card, Kayode Adegoke, head of Corporate Communications of the NIMC, said the General multipurpose card (GMPC) will eliminate the need for multiple cards.
“The new National ID Card is a single, convenient, and General multi-purpose card (GMPC), eliminating the need for multiple cards—not three.
“The single GMPC has multiple use cases: Payments/Financial, Government intervention/services, travel, etc.
“The National Identity Management Commission is working with the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Nigerian Interbank Settlement System to deliver the payment and financial use cases.
“The card will be powered by the AFRIGO card scheme, an indigenous scheme powered by NIBSS. Applicants for the card will have to request with their NIN through the self-service online portal, NIMC offices, or their respective banks.
“The card will be issued through the applicants’ respective banks, in line with existing protocols with the issuance of the Debit/Credit cards.
“The card can be picked up by holders at the designated centre or delivered to the applicants at the requested location at an extra cost to be borne by the applicants,” he said.
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