E-Business
Tears-of-Joy as Winners Emerge in Microsoft Devices’ “Passion to Empire” Campaign
Jessica Yahaya, an entrepreneur with passion for agricultural produce preservation was reduced to tears-of-joy as she joined Daniel Isa, Emmanuel Ugwueke, Emmanuel Okena and Godwin Benson as five top winners in the five-week Microsoft Mobile Devices and Services (MMDS) “From Passion to Empire” campaign.
The winners afterwards smiled home with N3.5miilion each and will be mentored by the likes of Nigerian top beauty entrepreneur, Tara Fela-Durotoye, entertainment mogul, the founder and CEO of Chocolate City, AuduMaikori and techpreneur and founding partner of leading careers and jobs website, Jobberman, Opeyemi Awoyemi.
Aside that, they have won themselves direct entry to Pan African University programme to be sponsored by MMDS too.
The campaign which commenced on February 16 ended on March 31, 2015 recorded over 4,000 entries while 15 were selected for the last pitching duel.
According to Mr. Joseph Umunakwe, managing director, Microsoft Mobile Devices and Services, inspiration for the “Passion to Empire” campaign was drawn from the drives of Bill Gates, the Microsoft Founder, who defiled all odds to establish the company, today recognized as the top software and hardware brand around the globe.
“The initiative” Umunakwe, said, “targeted at entrepreneurs to test the strength of their ideas, sharpen their skills and expand their frontiers as they go through a period of intensive business coaching with the aim to ultimately, establish their businesses”.
“Like I said during a programme, not long time ago, the reason our entrepreneurs fail is largely for lack of the bridge between passion and empire. We at Microsoft have seen it as a challenge and are willing to help out to ensure these noble ideas are ultimately utilized for the society’s growth”.
He added that the first and second runners up will be given opportunity to participate in the mentorship programme, because they have innovative acumen needful to the society.
Speaking on the sideline of the Lumia devices that spurred the campaign, Olumide Balogun, senior product manager, Microsoft Mobile Devices and Services, West and Central Africa, said that the Lumia 535 Dual SIM offers five great integrated Microsoft experiences, a wide-angle 5 megapixel front facing camera, and a spacious 5 inch display protected with Gorilla Glass 3 which makes it a perfect device for entrepreneurs who want to be able to do more on the go.
Expressing delight over the opportunity, Jessica Yahaya, said that while growing up as a child in Kaduna, she was never satisfied that her family records losses each year after fruitful farming, largely for lack of proper preservation mechanism.
She vowed to ensure that both her family, community and the nation, benefit from her technological program that will ensure proper farm products preservation.
On his part, Emmanuel Ugwueke whose team, in the last five years, have been manually engraving and branding companies’ names and logos on tin covers and packs, N3.5million is a major boost to their operations and will aid in transmission from manual to automated process.
Ugwueke said, “We have companies from Nassarawa, Benue, Kogi and others, who are willing to give us business, but we are limited due to the manual process of our operations. So, when I heard about the Microsoft Devices campaign, I reluctantly applied and they email me be in Lagos for the competition. Today, a new chapter has been opened to us.
“We have the idea that what we can produce will even discourage companies from travelling abroad for their packaging branding and engraving. Apart from that, it will stop capital flight and boast job creation in Nigeria. We are thankful to Microsoft and the judges who saw sense in what we are doing”.
On his part, Godwin Benson, hopes to transform the face of tutorial in Nigeria, adding that with a mobile application, they will connect parents and students to their choice tutors from any part of the country.
He said that the educational subsector has been growing by 17% in Nigeria and will even reach over 20% by year 2020.
According him, the application is to reduce the stress, time wastages and other inhibiting factors faced in the Nigerian tutorial and non-tutorial circle.
However, Emmanuel Okena, found pleasure in tackling challenges in the waste management and disposal in the country.
Using Lagos State as the model, he said that currently, residents are faced with issues such as a disconnect from the waste managers and improper billing and payment systems.
To him, it’s time the country removed the bottlenecks and move the secure to another level using technology.
Other winners also showcased creative ways to curbing Nigeria’s multi-faceted challenges.
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Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has opposed a bill seeking to compel major global social media companies to establish physical offices in Nigeria.
The rights advocacy group urged the National Assembly to discard the proposed legislation, warning that it could become a tool for censorship and undermine citizens’ constitutional right to freedom of expression, despite being presented as a measure to strengthen Nigeria’s digital economy and improve corporate accountability.
The position was contained in a presentation submitted yesterday by Emmanuel Onwubiko, national coordinator, HURIWA, to the chairman of the Senate Committee on ICT and Cyber Security.
The bill, sponsored by Senator Ned Munir Nwoko, has already passed second reading in the Senate and is before the committee for further legislative consideration.
HURIWA said it carefully reviewed the proposed legislation and concluded that compelling global technology companies to establish offices in Nigeria was unnecessary and potentially counterproductive.
The organisation argued that while the firms generate substantial revenue from Nigeria’s vast digital market, they already engage Nigerians through existing structures, including paying eligible content creators, working with local technology professionals and participating in legal proceedings whenever required.
According to the group, appointing local representatives where necessary would adequately address concerns about engagement with regulators and users without forcing the companies to maintain physical offices.
It also dismissed claims that mandatory country offices would significantly improve consumer complaint resolution, technology transfer or employment generation.
HURIWA maintained that the platforms already have effective feedback mechanisms for resolving users’ complaints and routinely appear before Nigerian courts through their representatives whenever litigation arises.
The group, however, said its greatest concern was the potential for the proposed law to be used as an instrument for restricting freedom of expression.
It argued that establishing local offices could expose global social media companies to pressure from government authorities to remove online content considered critical of those in power.
According to the rights group, the presence of social media companies in Nigeria could become an avenue for authorities to pressure them into abandoning internationally recognised digital rights standards in favour of politically motivated content moderation.
It recalled previous attempts to regulate social media in Nigeria that generated widespread concerns over possible restrictions on free speech, stressing that any legislation affecting the digital space must contain clear safeguards against abuse.
The organisation warned that the proposed law should never become “a backdoor mechanism for government surveillance, arbitrary content removal or political censorship.
Nigeria has emerged as one of Africa’s most regulated online gambling markets, even as illegal operators continue to dominate the continent, according to a new report by Gaming Compliance International (GCI).
The report, the first comprehensive assessment of online gambling across all 54 African countries, showed that Africa’s online gambling Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR) reached $23 billion in 2025.
However, only $5.2 billion (23 per cent) was generated by licensed operators, while $17.8 billion (77 per cent) remained in the unregulated market.
In West Africa, total online gambling revenue rose to $4.8 billion in 2025 from $4.3 billion in 2024. Of the 2025 figure, regulated operators accounted for $1.5 billion (31 per cent), while $3.3 billion (69 per cent) flowed to unlicensed platforms, highlighting the region’s persistent enforcement challenges.
Nigeria stood out as the region’s strongest performer, recording the lowest unregulated market share at 56 per cent, compared with the West African average of 69 per cent and the African average of 77 per cent.
The study also found that online gambling participation across Africa increased from 198 million people (13 per cent of the population) in 2024 to 215 million (14 per cent) in 2025.
Despite this growth, GCI estimated that illegal operators deprived African governments of about $3.55 billion in tax revenue in 2025. The number of unlicensed gambling platforms targeting African consumers also rose to 4,129, up from 3,644 in 2024.
Commenting on the findings, Matt Holt, chief executive officer, GCI, said the report provides regulators with the first continent-wide benchmark for strengthening oversight and consumer protection.
Ismail Vali, president, GCI, urged governments to develop competitive and well-regulated markets that encourage consumers to patronise licensed operators, boost public revenue and attract greater investment.
Online gambling in Nigeria is regulated by the Nation Lottery Regulatory Commission.
At the height of the Northern Hemisphere tourist season, demand for communications and mobile Internet services rises sharply. Kaspersky’s security experts have uncovered scams that target anyone purchasing mobile connections or SIM cards worldwide.
Fraudsters create counterfeit websites that look like the portals of major regional and international telecom providers to trick users into revealing their phone numbers, personal details or banking information.
Kaspersky is sharing several examples of these fake login pages that mimic legitimate telecom operator sites and giving recommendations on how not to be deceived.
In the first case, scammers exploit the brand name of an international telecommunications company operating services in Asia, Africa and Europe. Fake authentication pages encourage users to put in their phone number and credentials.
While the first example shows the different design, the second scam site closely mimics the original log in page, making it hard for users to tell the difference and spot a fake. Entering authentication or payment data on fraudulent web sites may result in money or data loss and become a reason for more frequent spam and fraudulent calls.
Another example is a scam page which poses as another international communications company, working in North Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. In this scheme scammers encourage users to top up their mobile data/Internet plans by entering their personal information and bank cards details.
Kaspersky experts have also identified a scam when cyber criminals suggest users enter their personal data to check and pay a bill inquiry. Such scam schemes are usually aimed at gaining victims’ personal data for further fraud or account hacking and stealing money.
“Because of the active use of AI, scammers can now create fake pages with ever increasing accuracy and speed, targeting the most popular user interest areas. We constantly see scams revolving around sports events, music concerts, seasonal sales and holidays. Unfortunately, the telecoms industry is no exception.
To keep your data and money safe, be vigilant when purchasing mobile or Internet plans online. Using an eSIM – purchased through an official app – is one way to avoid fake telecom sites, as it eliminates the need to enter personal details on questionable web pages.
If you’re unsure about a site’s legitimacy, search for the brand name directly in a search engine and enable a security solution that blocks phishing links for you,” comments Tatyana Kulikova, cybersecurity expert at Kaspersky.
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