General News
Regulation, Big Operators Emasculate Smaller Firms — Banjo
Bayo Banjo, is president of Nigeria Internet Group (NIG), a non-governmental organisation dedicated to promotion and growth of Internet in Nigeria. A veteran within the business echelons across Nigeria; he is also the CEO of Discom Limited, a leading telco in the forefront of revolutionizing telecommunication industry in Nigeria. Banjo is a pioneer in the fields of satellite communications, digital and mobile telephony and has an outstanding track record spanning a highly acclaimed career in communications, publicity and promotions. His consult is a recognized and highly valued resource. He shared his thoughts with Chike Onwuegbuchi
Internet Connectivity to Rural Areas
This is one of the most difficult things to do particularly in our environment. Abroad they can easily do this because in most cases they have people of integrity running it. If you want to go to a rural area, you go there find somebody who lives in that rural area and that is interested in doing the business. You will find that every village right now has a business centre. Somebody is running some sort of business, whether he is using Vsat or some other device to get the internet. You encourage that kind of person, you bring out special licenses that will cost maybe N2, 000. Do not call it a licence, call it a registration and you show him all the cheap ways that he can set up a proper distribution system. You can even task operators, maybe give them some tax relief if they supply internet to rural area. It must be done with policy and innovative ideas and you must find these people who like such place and want to stay there you encourage them. That is what federal governments do. When governments want to do anything in an unusual environment they send a team to go and investigate. Who are the people who like the environment? These are people who do not want to leave that village. They love the village, they are local champions in the village, if such people go to Lagos they will be nobody, so they are happy in the village. You encourage those kinds of people and say you have this grant from the World Bank, Unesco or whatever, help him with the process to buy small equipment that will cover the village. You then say to the big operators- for every point you provide, we give you a tax relief. You find some policy that will encourage the companies to help assist these people.
Human beings only operate on two fronts and that is the carrot and stick. If you want someone to do something, you either flog him or give him a reward. You must have a team at the NCC that in many cases is talking to this person that is not well educated. His interest is in cybercafé, he has set up his equipment by calling on one small boy from the city. Set up a team to train them to make them aware of how easy it is to provide the service, but that is the problem.
Digitization
First of all I think it was a mistake in the beginning to have allowed the issue of foreign broadcasting. We Nigerians behave as if we do not know anything. In America, unless you are an American citizen, you cannot have an outfit and it does not matter here. Foreign companies come and register and if you make too much noise they will go and get a Nigerian chairman or shareholders. That does not work abroad. You trace the interest, who has control? It does not matter what is on paper. This has been going on for a long time since the 70s.Once you see it is foreign controlled, you stop it immediately. You encourage Nigerians to reach certain level. That should be done in the broadcast industry. You find realistic ways on major policies to ensure that it is a Nigerian broadcaster in control.
Broadcasting is more powerful than military evasion. You can destroy a country by filling it with propaganda and misinformation. The old Soviet Union was toppled without firing a shot, using the media, inciting them into Western and capitalists’ values and the whole empire that was stronger, if not stronger than the United States crumbled on that basis and same thing is happening here. Lots of our values, God so kind, Nollywood has sort of taken off and pushed lots of the foreign films aside. You see films where homosexuality is normal and all these foreign vices. Children being rude to their parents, all these things have depreciated.
As for digitization, it is a welcome development. What I think is going to happen eventually is that there will be emerge of what is called centre point transmission companies. That means we would have two companies in Lagos that would broadcast; because a frequency allocation of 8MGHz in the olden days carrying one channel can now carry 14 to 16 channels. I think what would happen is that they would probably have central points for broadcast and these companies would provide channels.
When you want to broadcast you go to the NBC, you show them how you want to broadcast, what type of programme and the content. They would direct you to the broadcast person who charges a fee per year to help you broadcast and these people would broadcast maybe 50, 100, 200 channels. I do not think if the government is doing their policy right that when they renew the licences of AIT and others, I do not think it should come with a frequency. It would be like what you see with this Chinese company broadcasting for NTA. They are already carrying AIT and all others so the government policy would just say open air, no coding. I mean no payment because all television would be digitized and those televisions that are not would buy a small box so the only thing there is that the government must make sure that the boxes and new television come in. If you want to have a coding system, it must be slot in type card so that it can be changed. If tomorrow this system becomes obsolete, you can take out the card and slot in another card. Those are the standards that should be arranged.
Then of course you must remember that there is going to be broadcasting on the internet. Once we get broadband then a lot of broadcasting would be done on the internet. I think it is a good trend but there and then the government must judge the advantages and disadvantages.
Dwindling Fortune of Small Operators
It is a matter of regulation. Most of the small companies were run out of business by big operators who engage in a systematic approach of sabotage. They are still doing it even among themselves. They do all sorts of sabotage but with the smaller operators they do things like cutting them off. The smaller operators then complain to the NCC. This is a process of letters you see. You complain to the NCC, the NCC then writes the operator saying we heard you cut the small operator off.
Under the procedure, you have to reply within three weeks. By the time you do three or four letters, two months have gone by and the small operator would have lost all his customers. There is no provision for damage. If we have a policy where the NCC says if you cut off this circuit, this is the amount of money the operator was making from you before he was cut off, you will now pay him that amount. Then you could rescue the small operators but right now most smaller operators do not have confidence in the NCC at all. The main thing we must understand is that you cannot progress with a big operator. A big operator by its very design is a saboteur of development. If I am a big operator, I install equipment nationwide and that equipment becomes obsolete, what would be my natural reaction to this? My reaction would be to make sure that none of the new equipment comes out and it is small operators that will bring out new equipment so I would sabotage them and keep the old technology and the old equipment running. This is a natural behavioural pattern. You cannot blame the operators for that but it is up to the NCC to realize that in this business in five years even sometimes three what just came out two years ago would be obsolete today and a big company would always try to get full value for its investments and the solution is to hold everybody back. If you want to get things running in Nigeria, you must have someone in charge at the NCC who has guts, strong, sound and is respected. Until we have such people we are still going to face this problem.
Reviving Smaller Operators
The major problem for small operators is that they do not trust the NCC that it would follow the laws and procedures to protect them from the big operators. It is like when investors are not confident in your country because there is war or whatever unrest in your country. What do you do to regain the confidence? To reassure the small operators, I would say first of all that the NCC should make the licensing procedures swift. Luckily an internet licence is N500,000 but obviously there must be something for the village, what they call registration. Those small companies find it difficult to raise funds because they usually work with their own funds and those from other interested parties so you must first try not to stress them too much.
You must make sure that the NCC branches have full representation, for example if I am in Sokoto, does the NCC have an office in Sokoto? Well, if they have, can the person go to that office and do everything he needs to do swiftly without having to spend money on airfare and hotel anytime he wants to do any little thing flying to Abuja. The NCC branches should be equipped so that when I walk in there, they do things quickly. If they have to do anything at the head office, let it go through the internet, send back the reply and give the authority.
Young girls aspiring to delve into ICT careers have been advised to take advantage of the current versatility in the industry to create a niche for themselves. This was the view of participants at the just-concluded International Girls in ICT Day celebration organised by eBusinessLife Communication Limited, in Lagos.
The event, an initiative of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), seeks to encourage young girls to take up tech careers that will see them balance the gender disparity in the industry.
In a panel session moderated by Tech Life Media CEO and organiser of Women Entrepreneurs & Executives in Technology Summit (WEETS), Ugochi Emmanuel, top female tech executives narrated their foray into technology careers and advised the young girls on requirements and need to start early in the quest to make global impact in ICT.
Narrating her experience into a tech career, Chief Administrative Officer, Digital Realty, Nigeria, Dr. Nkechi Newton Denila noted that the difficulties of the past have been lightened up and more women have opportunities to excel in the field.
“Today, the landscape is vastly different. Governments, international organizations and private institutions across the globe are intentionally creating opportunities for girls in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). The reason we are gathered here is part of that global commitment to ensuring that more women participate in ICT and related fields.
This presents a unique advantage for young girls. Many organizations now deliberately promote gender inclusion and equal opportunities in technology. Therefore, if you discover an area within ICT that excites you, pursue it wholeheartedly. This window of opportunity may not remain open forever. Do not wait for others to decide your future for you. Identify your passion, chart your course, and remain committed to achieving your goals.”
Associate Consultant and Information Security Analyst, Digital Encode, Itunuola Aderemi, advised the young girls to begin researching various technology disciplines, including Cybersecurity, Data Analytics and Data Science for areas that align fully with their interests and strengths. And to explore and discover any field that perfectly matched my aspirations.
While admitting the existence of such challenges as persistent stereotype against the female gender, Team Lead, Retails, New Horizons Nigeria, Glory Omole, noted that fortunately, organisations such as New Horizons are actively working to change that narrative. “Our leadership recognizes the urgent need to increase female participation in ICT. Considering that women still constitute a relatively small percentage of the global technology workforce, there is a deliberate effort to encourage more girls and women to enter the field.”
She however cautioned the young girls not to see this campaign as a competition between men and women, rather, it should be seen as a partnership where everyone is given equal opportunities to contribute and excel. “We want to see more women leading innovations, conducting research, developing applications and creating solutions that address societal challenges,” she enthused.
Speaking on the need for mentorship, Asst. Manager, Product & Services, Zoracom, Mistura Salaudeen, noted that stereotypes and confidence-related challenges still exist, but one effective way to overcome them is by drawing inspiration from women who have succeeded. She observed that across government, technology, finance, healthcare and other sectors, women are increasingly occupying leadership positions, serving as Chief Technology Officers, board members and executives.
“While challenges persist, I believe our focus should shift towards opportunities rather than obstacles. Artificial Intelligence, for example, has significantly lowered barriers to entry. AI enables individuals to develop business proposals, prepare presentations and execute ideas much faster than before. Therefore, instead of being discouraged by challenges, girls should leverage available technologies and communities to accelerate their growth and maximize emerging opportunities,” she advised.
Glory Omole also noted that technology is broad and offers diverse opportunities.
“There are numerous digital skills available today, but the choice of skill should depend largely on individual interests and career aspirations.
Fields such as Data Analytics, Data Science, Cybersecurity, Web Development and User Interface/User Experience (UI/UX) Design are among the high-demand skills available today. Each serves a distinct purpose.”
Corroborating this claim, Dr. Newton-Denila said: “It is important to understand that ICT now permeates virtually every profession. Whether in medicine, law, engineering, agriculture or business, technology has become an indispensable component of professional practice.
In medicine, for example, Artificial Intelligence is increasingly being used in diagnostics, telemedicine and robotic surgery. Similarly, in law, digital applications now support legal research, documentation and case management.”
The event has its theme as “AI for Development: Girls Shaping the Digital Future”.
General News
Franklyn Ginger-Eke CEO The Rainbow Strategy Honoured with PR Power List 2026 Rising Voices Award
Dr Franklyn Ginger-Eke, Founder and Chief Strategist of The Rainbow Strategy, has been honoured with the PR Power List 2026 Award in recognition of his contributions to strategic communications and public relations in Nigeria.
Franklyn Ginger-Eke, CEO The Rainbow Strategy
Ginger-Eke received the award in the Rising Voices category during the fifth edition of the PR Power List organised by GLG Communications as part of activities marking the 2026 World Public Relations Day.
The award ceremony, held at the Mike Adenuga Centre in Ikoyi, Lagos, attracted leading professionals and stakeholders in Nigeria’s public relations industry.
Among those in attendance were the President and Chairman of Council of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), Dr Ike Neliaku; the Chief Executive Officer of the Public Relations Consultants Association of Nigeria (PRCAN), Dr Nkechi Ali-Balogun; former President of the African Public Relations Association (APRA) and Chief Executive Officer of CMC Connect LLP, Chief Yomi Badejo-Okusanya; and Executive Director of THOP and Adviser, Edelman Africa, Mr Kwame Senou.
According to the organisers, the PR Power List recognises public relations and communications professionals whose work has made significant contributions to organisations, influenced public discourse and advanced the communications profession over the past year.
Reacting to the recognition, Ginger-Eke described the award as both humbling and motivating.
“I am deeply honoured to receive this recognition for the modest contribution we are making in shaping the public relations and communications ecosystem.
“I see it as a testament to the dedication, creativity and excellence of our team at The Rainbow Strategy.
“This is a call to do more in delivering strategic communication solutions that create impact, build trust and contribute to the continued growth of the public relations profession in Nigeria,” he said.
He dedicated the award to young and aspiring communication professionals, encouraging them to embrace innovation, professionalism and ethical practice in their careers.
Ginger-Eke also reaffirmed The Rainbow Strategy’s commitment to promoting excellence in strategic communications, reputation management, stakeholder engagement, data protection compliance and value-driven public relations campaigns across the public and private sectors.
A Fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), Ginger-Eke is recognised for his work in public affairs, strategic communication and data protection compliance through his Abuja-based consultancy, The Rainbow Strategy.
Dangote Petroleum Refinery is reportedly nearing completion of a $2.5 billion private placement that values the company at about $40 billion ahead of its planned public listing.
Private placement is the direct sale of company shares or bonds to pre-selected investors instead of the general public and it is used to raise money quickly while avoiding strict public reporting rules.
People familiar with the transaction said investors acquired as much as 6 per cent of the refinery, according to a BusinessDay report.
The reported terms would value the business at approximately $40 billion.
Neither Dangote Group nor the refinery has publicly announced the final amount raised, the identities of most subscribers or the precise percentage sold.
The figures should therefore be treated as transaction details supplied by unnamed sources rather than confirmed company disclosures.
The reported $2.5 billion total is nevertheless significant as it indicates strong demand for exposure to a privately controlled refinery that has rapidly become central to Nigeria’s fuel supply and an increasingly important exporter of petroleum products.
The placement was said to have attracted more demand than the available shares, allowing the company to secure substantially more than the amount initially associated with the fundraising exercise.
Femi Otedola, chairman, First HoldCo, is the only major participant publicly identified in the report.
He reportedly committed $100 million to the transaction and sold his investment in Geregu Power Plc to finance the acquisition.
Nigeria’s pension industry was also reportedly cleared to participate.
Access to more than $17 billion in retirement assets would broaden the refinery’s potential investor base beyond wealthy individuals and conventional institutional buyers.
Participation by Pension Fund Administrators would, however, require careful attention to valuation, liquidity and portfolio-concentration limits.
Retirement funds must balance the attraction of a large Nigerian industrial asset against their responsibility to protect contributors’ savings.
The implied $40 billion valuation represents investor expectations about the refinery’s future earnings rather than only the physical cost of constructing the facility.
Its ability to process 650,000 barrels of crude daily gives it a central role in supplying Nigeria and other markets, but its commercial performance remains connected to crude availability, product prices, exchange rates and regulation.
The refinery has struggled to obtain all the Nigerian crude it requires under the government’s naira-for-crude arrangement.
It has consequently purchased some feedstock internationally and recently moved local petroleum-product pricing into dollars to align sales revenue more closely with its foreign-currency expenses.
Those constraints will be important during any public offering.
Prospective shareholders will want greater clarity on crude-supply contracts, debt, operating margins, export revenue and the company’s relationship with Nigerian regulators.
It is also unclear whether the private placement involved newly issued shares, a sale by existing owners or a combination of both.
That distinction determines whether the reported $2.5 billion becomes fresh capital for the refinery or proceeds received by selling shareholders.
The transaction could provide a useful price reference for the planned initial public offering.
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