LG Electronics has reaffirmed its commitment to advancing innovation and smart living across Africa by participating as a supporting sponsor at the Africa Technology Expo (ATE) 2026, where the company is showcasing its latest portfolio of premium consumer electronics and home appliance innovations.

The two-day expo, themed around strengthening Africa’s enterprise technology ecosystem through collaboration and innovation, has brought together industry leaders, technology innovators, multinational companies, policymakers, and entrepreneurs to explore opportunities for cross-border partnerships and digital transformation across the continent.

As one of the supporting sponsors of this year’s event, LG’s interactive exhibition booth has become a major attraction, offering visitors firsthand experience of the company’s latest AI-powered technologies designed to enhance everyday life while delivering greater comfort, convenience, energy efficiency, and connectivity.

Among the innovations on display are the latest LG QNED TV, delivering exceptional picture quality and immersive entertainment; the iconic MoodUP™️ Refrigerator, which combines intelligent cooling with customizable LED door panels; the innovative LG WashTower™️, an all-in-one premium laundry solution that maximizes space and efficiency; the energy-efficient LG ARTCOOL Air Conditioner and LG Air Tower, designed to provide smarter climate control; alongside LG’s advanced Dehumidifier and other intelligent home solutions.

Speaking on LG’s participation, Mr. H.S. ji, Managing Director, LG Electronics West Africa, said: “Africa Technology Expo provides an excellent platform to engage with innovators, businesses, and consumers who are shaping the future of technology across the continent. At LG, innovation goes beyond creating advanced products, it is about developing meaningful solutions that improve everyday life.

“Our participation reflects our commitment to supporting Africa’s digital transformation while introducing intelligent technologies that make homes and workplaces smarter, healthier, and more energy-efficient.”

The Africa Technology Expo was established to foster stronger collaboration among African businesses, emerging enterprises, and multinational organisations. During the opening ceremony, the organisers emphasized the need for deeper continental collaboration to unlock Africa’s innovation and economic potential, noting that previous editions of the expo have facilitated approximately $192 million in business deals among participating companies.

LG’s presence at the event aligns with this vision by demonstrating how cutting-edge consumer technology can support economic growth, digital inclusion, and sustainable development across Africa.

Visitors to the LG booth are participating in live product demonstrations, interactive experiences, and expert consultations, gaining valuable insights into how LG’s AI-powered ecosystem seamlessly connects home appliances and entertainment products to deliver a smarter lifestyle.

As technology continues to reshape industries and everyday living, LG remains committed to driving innovation that empowers consumers, supports enterprise growth, and contributes to Africa’s evolving digital economy.

Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) has secured a 12 million-dollar commitment from the South Korean Government to establish a Skills Acquisition Centre in Abuja to boost entrepreneurship and strengthen Nigeria’s Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).

SMEDAN

The Director-General of SMEDAN, Mr Charles Odii, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday to commemorate the 2026 World MSME Day with the theme: “Empowering MSMEs through Innovation and Sustainable Industrial Development.”

Odii said the proposed centre would provide vocational and entrepreneurial training for thousands of young Nigerians and improve the productive capacity of small businesses across the country.

He said the agency was awaiting the allocation of land by the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) to commence the project.

According to him, SMEDAN is determined not to allow Nigeria to lose the opportunity presented by the South Korean Government’s intervention.

“We need land in the FCT to build the Skills Acquisition Centre. If the FCT Administration is unable to provide one, we will use our office premises in Idu, Abuja, because we do not want Nigeria to miss this 12 million-dollar commitment and opportunity offered by the Korean Government to support skills and vocational training,” he said.

Odii described MSMEs as the backbone of Nigeria’s economy, noting that the agency’s interventions were aimed at empowering small businesses to drive employment and economic growth.

“Small businesses are the heartbeat of Nigeria’s economy. They contribute significantly to employment generation and economic growth.

“By providing infrastructure, skills and financing, we are creating an enabling environment for them to grow, thrive and contribute meaningfully to national development,” he said.

The SMEDAN boss also announced the launch of a N500 million zero-interest Grow Fund to improve access to affordable finance for MSMEs.

He said the facility would be disbursed through cooperative societies, trade associations and business membership organisations under a revolving loan arrangement.

Odii explained that the association-based lending model was designed to improve accountability, ensure effective monitoring and guarantee that funds reached genuine entrepreneurs.

“We visited traders at the market because it is not enough to sit in offices and formulate policies without understanding the realities of the people we are meant to serve.

“We met with butchers, pepper sellers, vegetable traders, provision store owners and market leaders, and they all said one thing: they need access to affordable finance.

“That was why we immediately decided to launch the N500 million Grow Fund. We are not giving the money directly to individuals. We are giving it to associations that know their members and can monitor how the funds are used,” he said.

According to him, beneficiaries will access loans ranging from N250,000 to N500,000, depending on their business needs, without paying interest.

“The funding is meant to support and improve businesses. It should be used for working capital, workspaces, tools and other productive business needs.

“It is a revolving fund. When one beneficiary repays, another entrepreneur can access the same money. This way, the impact of the intervention continues to expand and more small businesses can benefit,” he added.

Odii said the agency planned to expand the fund through partnerships with state governments, development partners and financial institutions willing to provide matching funds.

He also disclosed that SMEDAN had commenced consultations on a new National MSME Policy, expected to be relaunched in November, to strengthen the policy framework for the sector.

He reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to supporting small businesses through skills development, access to finance and policies that would enhance their competitiveness and contribution to Nigeria’s economic development.

Nigeria’s weak data protection guardrails may undermine the recent directive by Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to banks, fintech firms, and other payment service providers to store payment transaction data generated within the country  local servers.

CBN said that the new rule will start from January 1, 2027, as part of new measures to strengthen oversight of the fast-growing digital payments ecosystem.

This will also provide the country greater control over critical data infrastructure, allowing authorities to easily access records, conduct audits, enforce compliance, and investigate, especially in cases where criminal offenses are involved, reducing delays often caused by intermediation between local and foreign entities.

Apart from data sovereignty, the CBN added that moving transaction records from foreign servers will help drive investments in local data centers and cloud storage capacity.

Though reliable estimates are hard to come by, it is believed that Nigeria loses over N60 billion in hosting data in foreign servers.

But a coalition of civil society organizations (CSOs), has raised concerns over safety measures in place to protect data of Nigerians, despite having data protection laws in place.

The coalition, comprising Media Rights Agenda, Paradigm Initiative, Digital Rights Lawyers Initiative, and Accountability Lab Nigeria, among others, released the “Protected From the State, Not By It: Nigeria’s Data Protection Crisis Is a Crisis of Implementation,” where they criticized regulators’ failure to effectively enforce data protection laws, which led to rising cases of digital fraud and rampant illegal sale of sensitive information.

There have been leaks of sensitive voter, financial, and personal records.

For instance, there was alleged unauthorized access to the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) database of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) during a nationwide CVR exercise.

INEC earlier released the preliminary findings of its investigation into the matter, saying that it found no external breach of its systems and that the personal information of over 90 million registered voters was not compromised.

Despite this, CSOs argued that the incident underscored the lack of oversight, adding that it showed that while data privacy laws are in place, sensitive information can be easily moved from a secure government database and into the hands of private political entities.

The coalition also pointed out regulators’ failure to conduct human rights impact assessments on public surveillance systems before related programs were deployed, urging the government to act on these issues by subjecting public institutions to the same compliance requirements as private organizations.

“This is the asymmetry at the heart of the crisis: citizens are under-protected from data abuse and over-exposed to state monitoring and punishment,” the CSOs stated.

Additional report by coingeek