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Nokia Transforms Internet Experience with N97 Mobile Computer
Nokia has said it is building a world where we can always connect to our friends and loved ones, where we can know what they are doing, where they are and how they are feeling. A world where we can know what is going on around us, around the corner and even around the world.
This world becomes a reality with the Nokia N97 mobile computer and new Ovi services, including Maps on Ovi and Mail on Ovi.
“Today, we are at the threshold of another profound change in the way we connect and interact with each other and with our world,” Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo, president and CEO of Nokia, said at the opening of Nokia World 2008. “We are, in fact, transforming the Internet … putting in your hands the power to be more in tune with the world around you.”
“This is a world where you will have the power to tailor and personalize your Internet how and when you like, to make your day-to-day life easier and more fulfilling.”
Kallasvuo noted that Nokia, with more than one billion customers globally, has the opportunity to put the power of the Internet into the hands of more people in more places than any other company, “and that’s what we intend to do.”
Nokia’s global scope, assets such as NAVTEQ and a growing list of Ovi services, “uniquely position Nokia to transform the Internet to become a more personal and relevant part of our lives. And that’s a claim no legacy Internet company can make,” he added.
The Nokia N97, unveiled last week, is designed for Internet-savvy people. With integrated A-GPS sensors and an electronic compass, the device intuitively understands where it is. It ensures ease of update of social networks automatically with real-time information, giving people the ability to update their ‘status’ and share their location as well as related pictures or videos with approved friends.
The company’s flagship Nseries device packs a large 3.5” touch display, personalized homescreen and a full QWERTY keyboard, providing an ‘always open’ window to social networking sites and Internet destinations.
Maps on Ovi is the first free service that allows people to pre-plan their journey at home on their PC and synchronize with their mobile, giving access to pre-planned routes and favorite destinations while on the move.
Over the coming months, Nokia Maps will become a destination for people to save and organize places, pre-plan trips and post-edit them. People can share their location and all their personally and socially meaningful content with friends, inviting them to join in activities.
Mail on Ovi, together with Nokia Messaging which mobilizes consumer email and instant messaging on Nokia devices, brings mobile email to everyone and not just for a privileged few. With this, users will be able to create and access email online portal as well as on their mobile device.
Nokia Messaging, on the other hand, will give consumers access to their existing email and instant messaging accounts from Yahoo! Mail and Yahoo! Messenger, Windows Live Hotmail, Gmail and Google Talk, and AOL Mail as well as email solutions from thousands of ISPs around the world on the majority of Nokia devices.
The company is creating new opportunities for third parties to develop innovative widgets and other Internet service applications for Nokia devices, like the social networking widgets seen on the new Nokia N97’s personalized homescreen.
Over the course of the next year, Nokia will debut new and interesting opportunities to work together to create a highly personalized Internet experience on Nokia devices.
There are currently 3.5 million developers working on the S60 platform on Symbian OS, and more than 10,000 applications are available to date.
The Chartered Institute of Bankers (CIBN) and the Association of Corporate Communication and Marketing Professionals in Banks (ACAMB) have enjoined banks to further deepen and prioritize financial inclusion, women’s empowerment and sustained growth through strategic mandates and frameworks, aimed at closing the financial gap and empowering more small, and medium enterprise (MSME) owners.
Both organisations made this call during a courtesy visit to the newly invested 24th President and Chairman of Council of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), Dr. Dele Alabi, Ph.D, FCIB, as part of plans to congratulate him on his investiture as well as seek a stronger alliance between both bodies.
The visit followed Alabi’s investiture where he unveiled his “IMPACT” Vision, themed “Consolidating Our Local Impact, Enhancing Our Global Relevance.”
The vision rests on six pillars: Inclusion across geographic, gender, and generational lines; Membership growth and quality; Professionalism and ethics; Accountability; Competencies and skills development; Technology, automation, and innovation. Other areas of shared interest, include women empowerment, financial inclusion and literacy, as well as MSME clinics, all of which are top on his agenda.
Alabi explained that under him, the institute will be prioritising financial inclusion and women empowerment, because of its realisation that women are often the primary financial managers and caregivers in families. Access to savings, micro-credit, and insurance acts as a safety net during crisis and allows them to significantly improve living conditions.
He added that CIBN would be happy to drive joint knowledge sharing and exchange sessions with CBN and ACAMB across various platforms. “Educating the public through public awareness programmes, with ACAMB as the rallying point, is central to what we do,” he noted.
ACAMB President, Jide Sipe, who led the delegation, spoke in unison with the CIBN president, as he noted that, closing the inbalances in financial access help economies grow faster, reduces inequality, and encourages greater civic participation by all.
Lagos State has become the first sub-national government in Nigeria to establish a comprehensive Greenhouse Gas Registry, a move aimed at strengthening climate governance, improving emissions accountability and accelerating the state’s transition to a low-carbon economy.
The Lagos State Greenhouse Gas Registry (LGHGR) was unveiled at the Central Business District, Alausa, Ikeja, at a ceremony attended by Prof. Akin Abayomi, commissioner for Health, members of the State Executive Council, representatives of the Federal Ministry of Environment, development partners, TPHG Technologies, the diplomatic and business communities, academics, civil society organisations and the media.
Describing the initiative as a landmark achievement in the state’s environmental sustainability drive, Dr. Babatunde Ajayi, general manager of the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA), said the Registry marks a defining moment in Lagos’ climate action journey and reflects Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s commitment to building a resilient, climate-smart and environmentally sustainable economy.
According to Ajayi, the digital platform will enable the state to accurately measure, monitor, report and verify greenhouse gas emissions across key sectors, providing credible data to guide environmental policies and climate interventions.
He said the Registry would strengthen evidence-based decision-making, improve transparency and accountability, support national and international climate reporting obligations, unlock carbon market opportunities and boost investor confidence in Lagos’ environmental initiatives.
Ajayi also commended TPHG Technologies for providing the technical expertise that made the pioneering project possible.
Delivering the keynote address, Prof. Abayomi described the Registry as a major milestone that positions Lagos at the forefront of climate governance and emissions accountability in both Nigeria and Africa.
He noted that climate change has evolved into a significant public health and governance challenge, stressing that access to reliable emissions data would enable the state to formulate evidence-based policies, attract climate financing, strengthen resilience and accelerate its transition to a low-carbon economy.
Providing insights into the technical framework of the project, Dr. Mofoluso Fagbeja, lead consultant and chief executive officer, TPHG Technologies, explained that the Registry was developed from the greenhouse gas inventory jointly undertaken by LASEPA and TPHG Technologies in 2022, using 2019 as the baseline year for emissions assessment.
He said the platform is designed to close critical emissions data gaps, particularly within the industrial sector, while supporting effective climate policy implementation, emissions management and sustainable development.
Fagbeja also disclosed that the greenhouse gas inventory estimated that poor air quality contributes to about 35,000 premature deaths annually in Lagos, underscoring the urgent need for stronger emissions control measures and cleaner environmental practices.
In a goodwill message, Balarabe Abbas Lawal, minister of Environment, represented by Mrs. Adenaike Olunimpe Oludunni, federal controller of Environment in Lagos, commended Lagos State for pioneering the initiative, describing it as a significant contribution to Nigeria’s climate commitments.
He said the Registry aligns with the country’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement and supports the Federal Government’s Energy Transition Plan, while reaffirming the ministry’s commitment to deeper collaboration with Lagos State on climate governance and environmental sustainability.
A recently released Henley Passport Index 2026, showed that Nigerian citizens can travel to at least 20 destinations outside the African continent where entry is allowed either visa-free, with a visa on arrival (VOA) at no extra cost, or via an e-visa.
This expanded access opens doors for Nigerian travellers to experience countries in the Caribbean, Asia, and beyond with greater ease.
Below is a comprehensive guide to countries outside Africa which Nigerian passport holders can visit without a traditional visa.
Visa-Free Countries outside Africa for Nigerian Passport Holders:
Barbados
Cambodia – Visa on arrival
Comoros Islands – Visa on arrival
Cook Islands
Dominica
Fiji
Haiti
Iran – Visa on arrival
Kiribati
Lebanon
Maldives – Visa on arrival
Micronesia
Montserrat
Niue – Visa on arrival
Palau Islands – Visa on arrival
Samoa – Visa on arrival
St. Kitts and Nevis
Timor-Leste – Visa on arrival
Tuvalu
Vanuatuul
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