Telecom
NITDA Slams N5m Fine on ESL over Data Breach
National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has placed a five million (N5m) fine on Electronic Settlement Limited (ESL) over personal data breach that occurred at the company.
NITDA said that it arrived at the fine after concluding investigation process on the personal data provision, which is in line with the provisions of Nigeria Data Protection Regulations (NDPR).
The investigative process we gathered, involved an analysis of the company’s applications and websites; visit to the company’s office in Lagos, review of its technical documents as submitted to the Agency and interrogation of its officials by NITDA investigation team in Abuja.
“At the end of the process, we have established that there was a data breach involving the company”, Mrs Hadiza Umar, head, Corporate Affairs and External Relations, NITDA, confirmed.
NITDA however has commended Electronic Settlement Limited for the actions taken to mitigate this breach.
“Particularly, it’s taking full responsibility for the breach, updating identified security issues, cooperation with NITDA investigation team, recruitment of a data protection compliance organization, submission of its annual NDPR audit report and generally improving its compliance with the NDPR.
“The company’s actions demonstrate its sense of responsibility and duty to protect the data of Nigerians and customers in general.
“The objective of our investigation was to assess the risk resulting from the breach, with a view to identifying the causes, remedial actions taken and other necessary issues to avoid recurrence.
“The company has been well briefed on our prescriptions for better information security and protection of personal data”.
Umar said that in compliance with the NDPR and the need to prevent a repeat of this unfortunate breach, NITDA has directed as follows:
Electronic Settlement Limited shall be under a six-month information technology oversight by NITDA. The oversight shall involve oversight of implementation of prescribed security controls and processes.
That a clear data security and governance document is drawn up between the Electronic Settlement Limited and all its Information Technology services vendors identifying roles, responsibilities and processes involved in securing and protecting personal data.
That the company conduct regular NDPR training for all staff, publish and implement appropriate policies as required by the NDPR.
Submit 2020/2021 regulatory audit as required by Article 4.1.6 of the NDPR, conducted by a Data Protection Compliance Organization (DPCO) as licensed by NITDA.
Conduct Data Protection Impact Assessment on some data intensive applications and products.
Payment of the sum of Five million Naira only (5, 000, 000. 00) as fine in line with the requirements of the NDPR.
She expressed NITDA’s appreciation to the general public for their continued interest in ensuring the full implementation of the NDPR to safeguard personal data of citizen.
“NITDA is therefore using this opportunity to encourage every data controller and processor to embark on necessary measures to protect personal data. The Agency has graciously approved the extension of time to file the annual audit report to 30th June, 2021.
“We further reaffirm our continued commitment to implementing the NDPR vigorously and providing periodic updates to the public with regards to our activities and investigations in discharge of our mandate”.
Dr Bosun Tijani, Nigeria’s minister of communications, innovation, and digital economy, has revealed that the federal government’s 3 Million Technical Talent (3MTT) programme has trained over 135,000 citizens as it moves from pilot to national level.
Tijani announced this in an update on the program’s success, stating that the beneficiaries were trained in three batches.
He also stated that the initiative’s community-based learning tools had provided over 300,000 extra learners with access to digital skills training across the country.
According to the minister, the program has also enabled the creation of about 15,000 job, entrepreneurship, and career development in Nigeria’s developing digital economy.
He further revealed that more than 1.8 million Nigerians are currently in the 3MTT pipeline, as the government works toward its target of equipping three million citizens with in-demand digital skills aligned with local and global labour market needs.
As the programme enters its scale-up phase, Tijani said the government’s focus will shift toward deepening impact rather than just expanding numbers.
Key priorities, he explained, include strengthening the 3MTT alumni community, widening access to economic opportunities and ensuring that skills acquired through the programme translate into measurable outcomes such as jobs, business creation and innovation.
To support this phase, the federal government has introduced the #3MTTImpactChallenge, an initiative aimed at assessing the programme’s real-world impact
Through the challenge, fellows and partners are invited to share personal stories on how 3MTT has shaped their professional journeys as part of a National Impact Reflection exercise.
Participants are expected to share their experiences across social media platforms, with selected winners set to receive prizes including laptops, e-tablets, data bundles and other incentives.
Spacecoin, US-based, has announced the signing of recent agreements with local authorities and operators to launch satellite connectivity pilot projects in Africa.
The initiatives, focused on Kenya and Nigeria, aim to serve areas where terrestrial networks remain limited or unavailable.
n Kenya, Spacecoin has obtained a transmission license from the Communications Authority, allowing it to test satellite-based solutions for connectivity and Internet of Things (IoT) monitoring, particularly in rural and peri-urban areas with limited internet access.
According to the Kenyan regulator, internet penetration remains below 50% of the population, despite mobile penetration exceeding 130%.
In parallel, the company is continuing operations in Nigeria under an existing license issued by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).
This authorization supports initiatives aimed at delivering affordable broadband connectivity to isolated and underserved communities.
Spacecoin’s approach is based on a decentralized satellite network using nanosatellites in low Earth orbit (LEO).
Combined with blockchain-based protocols, this architecture is intended to offer more flexible and cost-effective connectivity services than traditional networks, while also enabling the integration of IoT solutions for a range of uses, from smart agriculture to infrastructure monitoring.
These projects are part of a broader strategy to help narrow Africa’s digital divide, where a significant share of the population still lacks access to reliable internet services.
Satellite technology is increasingly viewed as a complement to terrestrial infrastructure, particularly in hard-to-reach areas where deployment costs and geographic constraints remain high.
Beyond Africa, Spacecoin is also running pilot projects in Asia, working with local partners to test the viability of its model across different regulatory and geographic environments.
According to the company’s management, growing interest from regulators reflects a shift toward solutions capable of reaching populations that have long been excluded from internet access.
AVEVA, a global leader in industrial software, driving digital transformation and sustainability, today announces the appointment of Khaled Salah, 37 years old, as Vice President of Africa.
Khaled Salah
In this new role, he will be responsible for about 30 employees to ensure the successful implementation of AVEVA’s growth strategy. Khaled Salah will report directly to Jesus Hernandez, SVP of the EMEA region.
A 15-years + career across different industries and domains
With a MBA in management from the Warwick business school, UK, and a master’s degree in engineering from Ain Shams university in Egypt, Khaled Salah is an active advocate for driving sustainable progress in the industrial sector. With Sustainability in mind, Khaled is keen on making a positive business impact, while fostering progress for people and the planet.
He started his career at Schneider Electric, in 2013 in the global supply chain and evolved through various roles such as Europe procurement and supply chain strategy Manager, and Global Commercial strategy Director for the industrial automation business. Khaled Salah has developed a strategic understanding of all those fields.
After 12 years in Schneider Electric, Khaled joined AVEVA in 2022 to lead AVEVA and Schneider Electric global strategic partnership, across all industries managing a team of 30 people.
He has led the introduction of new AVEVA software solutions to initiate and develop significant growth areas across all Schneider Electric verticals.
Ambitious plans for AVEVA in Africa
In addition to his current role as AVEVA and Schneider Electric partnership Vice-President, Khaled now takes over the management of AVEVA’s activities in Africa.
Jesus Hernandez, SVP of the EMEA region says: “Africa is a strategic region for AVEVA. In this major industrial market, customers, world leaders in the fields of Energy, Metal & Mining, Chemicals, and Water, are looking for AVEVA’s expertise to accelerate and drive their digital transformation and sustainability strategies, as well as their energy transition projects.
“Khaled Salah’s qualities of leadership in a global environment will benefit his team spread across 12 countries including Algeria, Morocco, Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa.”
Motivated by the prospect of capitalizing on the talent of his team to strengthen AVEVA’s presence in Africa in the years to come, Khaled Salah says: “Helping my team realize their professional potential is close to my heart.
“We will work together to support and accelerate the digital transformation of industries in Africa, in particular through CONNECT, our industrial intelligence platform, with the support of our ecosystem of partners. »
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