Telecom
Stakeholders At BoICT Awards Canvass Use of ICT to Foster Sustainable Development
Opinion molders in the Nigerian Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector have drummed up support for the use of ICT to stimulate sustainable development in our institutions.
They disclosed this at the just concluded Beacon of Information and Communication Technology awards (BoICT) held on Saturday at Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.
Delivering the first keynote address at the event, Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, Phd , DG / CEO, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), represented by Hajiya Hadiza Umar, Head, Corporate Affairs and External Relations, NITDA, stated that this year’s theme of “Leveraging ICT Value for building institutions” aligns well with the growing movement to use ICT to foster sustainable development in institutions.
He stated that our institutions and indeed our nation can experience a high level of sustainable development through the effective use of ICT.
In his words, “it is often said that data is the new oil and organizations can now use data to create wealth.
“Today, an average smartphone can have as many as 10 sensors. We have about 144million active mobile lines in Nigeria, a sizable portion of which are smartphones, potentially giving us access to large volumes of data.
“With Artificial Intelligence and Big Data Analytics, such data can be translated into actionable insights for that would lead to sustainable development in the country.”
He encouraged captains of industries in the ICT sector to support ICT capacity building efforts both within their institutions and within the ICT Startup ecosystem, stressing that the future of the ICT industry depends on it.
The DG thanked the organizers for giving him the opportunity to deliver a keynote address of the 9th edition of the Beacon of ICT Awards.
Pantami noted that,” Over the years these Awards have celebrated the leading lights in the various spheres of the Nigerian ICT sector.
“They have also served as an inspiration to both the awardees and the general populace.
“I use this opportunity to salute the foresight and commitment of the organizers.” he said.
Femi Adeoti, MD / CEO Africa Operations- Inlaks Nigeria, who gave the second keynote address, said that Technology and Innovation will continue to be at the core of the operations of every Institution.
He added that, Mobile and digital payments technology is becoming increasingly significant, especially in the context of developing economies, where many low income households and microenterprises do not have ready access to financial services.
Adeoti stated that national identity management enabled by the biometrics technology serves as a foundation for the development of a country, noting that the use of biometrics have helped to strengthen the integrity of the country’s immigration and also help to prevent fraud during elections with the use of a National Identity Management System.
He noted that technology has not only made access to information easier but it has made learning easier.
He applauded MD of Systemspecs and his team for their role in ensuring that management Control Systems were created through the introduction of the Treasury Single Account (TSA).
“If a country has a fragmented system for handling government payments through the banking system, it is a critical Public Financial Management weakness that needs to be addressed.
“The TSA provided unified structure of all government bank accounts enabling consolidation and optimum utilization of government cash resources.
“TSA helped the Nigerian Government get a stronger hold of its finances and reduced fraud.” he stated.
Earlier, Dr.Ernest Ndukwe, Chairman, Open Media Group, who was the chief host of the event, thanked Communications Week Media for sustaining the awards for the past 9 years.
He noted that sustenance of the awards is important because the industry is such an evolving one, that always have something new that comes on every now and then in the industry.
He added that Nigeria is not bereft of new terms and new products in the ICT sector, adding that it has being a very good destination for many innovations that have been coming out from time to time.
He said “recently we started hearing about blockchain, and now we have moved to internet of things which is still evolving and there are just so many things that keep coming up all aimed at making our lives easier and creating an environment that makes it possible for us to live our lives in a more digitally enabled way.
“So I like to congratulate CommunicationsWeek team for the good work they have done over the years and the resilience in ensuring that we gather here every year.
“I am sure this evening promises to be a good evening as it has always been in the past and I will like us to relax, feel free and enjoy ourselves.“ he added.
Also, Dr LeoStan Ekeh, Founder/Chairman, Zinox Group and Chairman of the event said that, the ICT sector is a sector that has manpower deficits and at the same time the most progressive sector in the world.
He further extolled Nigeria Communicationsweek media’s role in building the ICT sector through their insightful reportage of the industry, adding that the knowledge CommunicationsWeek disseminate every morning shows the power of the media.
.
Dr Ekeh, eulogized and encouraged young men in the industry to stay focus; adding that technology is the new money.
He said, “I want to encourage our young men to stay focus, there is only one factory here, that must open, it does not matter who is in government in the next five years but the reality is that technology is new money, we can’t hide about it, but the young people need energy, I see them, they lack energy, they spend before they earn.
He added that his drive in the industry is as a result that things will turn around in the sector in the next few years; that he wants to watch it happen.
Federal government has unveiled an ambitious plan to deploy 7,000 telecommunications towers across the country, with 80 per cent allocated to Northern Nigeria to address the region’s acute connectivity deficit.
The federal executive council had already approved the 7,000 towers project by March 2025 to support digital transformation and 5G rollout, with formal rollout scheduled to begin in the fourth quarter of 2025.
The project’s first tower will be installed next week in a rural Abuja community of 5,000, where insecurity compounds connectivity challenges.
Unlike conventional masts, these towers will double as digital hubs, providing internet to schools, hospitals, and local government offices.
“Most of these clusters are in the North. That’s the reality. There are a few clusters in the South-West, you know, that are not connected, but the bulk of the clusters are in the North, Bosun Tijani, minister of Communications and Digital Economy, told TVC recently.
He continued, “So, almost 80% of these towers will be going towards filling that gap in the North. The rest will now patch up where we have left off.
“Unlike traditional telecom masts, they will deliver internet to local schools, hospitals, and government offices, maximising their impact. Wherever we put them, we use the same infrastructure to serve the community.”
Tijani highlighted a collaborative model where mobile network operators will connect to the towers’ cables, reducing redundancy and optimising resources.
Nigeria’s digital landscape remains uneven.
As of January 2025, 128.3 million Nigerians, 54.3 per cent of the population, lack internet access, ranking the country fourth globally for unconnected populations.
Broadband penetration stands at 48 per cent, with over 50 per cent of Nigerians living there, facing significant barriers, including unreliable electricity and low digital literacy.
Progress has been made, with the number of people in unserved and underserved areas falling from 36.8 million in 2013 to 23 million in early 2025, yet the connectivity gap remains a formidable challenge.
The 7,000-tower initiative, distinct from the separate Project 774, forms part of a broader strategy that includes satellite technology, such as Starlink, and fibre-optic cables, which Tijani described as the backbone of reliable connectivity in advanced markets.
The government’s focus on the North reflects the region’s disproportionate share of unconnected communities, while the project’s design aims to address both digital and security challenges.
Engr. Ikechukwu Nnamani, CEO of Digital Realty, West Africa’s leading interconnected data center facility, has been recognized for his outstanding contributions to Nigeria’s digital economy and the broader African ICT landscape.
L-R: Mr. Ken Nwogbo, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of CommunicationsWeek Media, Editor Engr. Ikechukwu Nnamani, CEO of Digital Realty and Dr. Muhammed Rudman, Chief Executive Officer, Internet Exchange Point of Nigeria (IXPN) at the 2025 Africa’s Beacon of ICT (ABoICT) Merit and Leadership Awards, organized by Communications Week media.
At a ceremony in Lagos, Nnamani was named among the Top 50 Most Valuable Personalities in Nigeria’s Digital Economy by KnowHow Media.
According to the organizers, this recognition reflects his unwavering commitment to innovation within Africa’s tech ecosystem.
Segun Oruame, Vice-Chairman of KnowHow Media, emphasized Nnamani’s significant impact on Nigeria’s ICT landscape, highlighting his role in advancing the country’s digital economy.
Adding to his accolades, Nnamani was also honored with the ICT Growth Impact Award in Data Centre Infrastructure at Africa’s Beacon of ICT (ABoICT) Merit and Leadership Awards, hosted by Nigeria Communications Week.
This award acknowledges his instrumental role in developing telecom and ICT infrastructure across multiple African nations, including Ghana, Togo, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Kenya, Uganda, and Angola.
Expressing gratitude for the recognitions, Nnamani dedicated the awards to his team at Digital Realty, acknowledging their continuous support.
He reaffirmed his commitment to fostering industry growth and driving innovation across Africa.
Telecom
SBTS Group CEO Evelyn Lewis Named Among Nigeria’s Top 50 Digital Economy Leaders for Youth-Focused Tech Initiatives
Evelyn A. Lewis, CEO of SBTS Group, has been named one of Nigeria’s “50 Most Valuable Personalities in the Digital Economy” by IT Edge News.Africa, recognizing his visionary leadership in digital transformation, innovation, and youth empowerment.
Presented during the “Nigeria: State of the Digital Economy 2025” colloquium and awards ceremony in Lagos, the recognition highlights Lewis’s role in shaping Nigeria’s digital future. The high-profile event, organized by Knowhow Media (publishers of IT Edge News.Africa), brought together top policymakers, digital innovators, and ecosystem enablers across public and private sectors.
At the center of Lewis’s recognition is his commitment to building Africa’s digital economy through skills and job creation. Under his leadership, SBTS Group—in collaboration with the Digital Bridge Institute (DBI)—is implementing an ambitious plan to:
- Train 5 million Nigerian youths
- Create 50,000 digital jobs by 2030
This initiative aligns with Nigeria’s National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) and the Federal Government’s 3 Million Technical Talent (3MTT) program.
SBTS Group’s proprietary Intelligent Capacity Building Model (ICBM), developed under Lewis’s leadership, is at the core of this effort. The model closes the gap between digital training and employment, offering career-focused tracks in:
- Cybersecurity
- Software Development
- Artificial Intelligence (AI)
- Business Process Outsourcing (BPO)
- Digital Entrepreneurship
ICBM is currently being rolled out across DBI campuses nationwide, forming a scalable framework for skills development.
SBTS and DBI will kick off the next phase of their national rollout with new training and BPO centres in Abuja and Enugu, scheduled for launch in June 2025. These centers are expected to create over 5,000 jobs in their first phase, acting as blueprints for replicable, sustainable digital employment hubs nationwide.
Beyond training, SBTS has also built a national unified digital learning and registration platform for DBI. The system integrates national identity tools such as NIN and BVN, supports student sponsorships, facilitates enterprise partnerships, and enables career tracking—laying a foundation for a data-driven, transparent digital skills ecosystem.
“This award reaffirms our commitment to building Africa’s digital economy from within,” said Evelyn Lewis. “At SBTS Group, we believe that human capital is Africa’s greatest asset. By empowering our youth, we’re investing in a future where Africa leads in innovation and competitiveness.”
The 50 Most Valuable Personalities (50MVPs) initiative annually celebrates visionary leaders accelerating Nigeria’s digital transformation. The 2025 edition recognized contributors across tech, governance, and entrepreneurship under the theme:
“Accelerating Nigeria’s Digital Transformation: Insights on Challenges and Emerging Opportunities.”
Other 2025 honourees include:
- Obadare Peter Adewale, CVO, Digital Encode
- Nentawe Yilwatda, Minister of Humanitarian Affairs & Poverty Reduction
- Ayọ̀wándé Àdalémọ, CEO, Wave5Wireless
- Krishnan Ranganath, Regional Executive, West Africa & Morocco – Africa Data Centres (ADC)
- Ike Nnamani, CEO, Digital Realty
- Daser David, President/CEO, Digital Bridge Institute
- Suleiman Isah, Commissioner for Communications Technology & Digital Economy
- Shuaibu Kabir Bello, CEO, KMDC
- Olawole Owoeye, Co-founder, Cedarview Communications
UBA Launches *919# Advance Top-Up Feature for Instant Access to Customers
EFCC Recovers over N20Bn Stolen by Hackers from 6 Banks in Nigeria
Court to Deliver Judgment in NIBSS’ Suit against CBN, Others over BVN Database Management
FG to Deploy 80 Percent of 7000 Telecom Towers to North
Ponzi Scheme Operators Risk N10m Penalty, Others- IST Chair
Telecom2 days agoTelecom Subscribers Decline By 43m in One Year
E-Business2 days agoNigeria Launches Cybercrime Team with Commonwealth, UK Support
E-Financial2 days agoSERAP Drags CBN to Court over Alleged Failure to Disclose LG Allocations
Telecom2 days agoNCC Orders Telcos to Compensate Subscribers for Outages More than 24 Hours
General News2 days agoHEDA Sues FG, Oil Giants over Alleged Unlawful Oil Licence Transfer
Telecom2 days agoIHS Nigeria, NSCDC Partner to Protect Telecoms Infrastructure
Telecom23 hours agoEngr. Ikechukwu Nnamani Receives Two Prestigious @ABoICT Awards
E-Financial22 hours agoEFCC Recovers over N20Bn Stolen by Hackers from 6 Banks in Nigeria