E-Business
The Benefits of Virtual Servers for Nigeria’s Education Institutions
If Nigeria’s universities and colleges are going to compete favourably with their counterparts across the world, they have to scale up the IT infrastructure that undergirds their operations. Virtual servers provide them with a means to achieve this, at relatively low costs.
Nigeria’s education system has recently come under significant strain. In the past year, the COVID-19 pandemic forced institutions of learning to pivot from in-person classes to online instruction. Students and educators alike had to adapt to virtual learning.
For many, this transition came with hitches. Universities struggled to organize online classes, hold tests on a digital platform, and protect results and biodata generated for candidates. Low-performance speeds were common, and downtimes were frequent.
In several of these instances, the major problems were insufficient server capacity and poor support from service providers.
An obvious solution to these problems is the adoption of virtual servers. Unlike physical servers, virtual servers can be scaled up to meet demand. This means they’re more flexible, less costly on the whole, and potentially more efficient.
What Are Virtual Servers?
A server is an infrastructure that accepts and responds to queries sent over a network. It facilitates the processing, storage, and retrieval of data or services, on the request of a ‘client’. A client is a computer other than the server that’s part of a network.
An internet server is what enables you to ask for and receive results for your web searches. It allows you to run web pages, mobile applications, and enterprise solutions. It’s the ‘pillar’ on which Operating Systems rest. In many cases, the server is hardware made up of a motherboard, CPU, RAM, and other physical components.
Virtual servers are software designed to work just like a physical server. Like the hardware, they enable the processing, storage, and delivery of data over networks. But there are important distinctions between the two.
Besides not being tangible, virtual servers can be built out of a single hardware server. You can also have Operating Systems on each virtual server. With multiple virtual resources created out of a single physical server, you could utilize a lot more capacity than you would have if you simply stuck to hardware alone.
Laying A Foundation For Efficiency
Greater capacity utilization suggests the potential for increased efficiency. This could play out in several ways, across much of a typical university’s operations.
If a college of education has a distance or remote learning program, it may improve the quality of its service delivery in this area by working with virtual servers. Thanks to the scalability and increased capacity use that it enables, the college can adjust resources to properly support its online classes.
Network disruptions are a major challenge for virtual learning in Nigeria. They are capable of truncating ongoing sessions and causing the loss of data that students and tutors consider crucial. But if universities use virtual servers, they could whip up Operating Systems with temporary instances of the data or sessions that they’ve lost. This would take just a few seconds, and ensure continuity for classes and other online activities.
Schools and higher institutions also have to keep their staff and student information safe and accessible. Often, they will set up password-protected profiles for people in either category on web portals. If it’s a large database (perhaps containing details for tens of thousands of people), robust storage and query response capabilities may be required to maintain it.
Profile updates will also be expected for things like session fees, course registration, and test results. The traffic to these pages could surge at the start or end of terms or sessions. Because virtual servers are scalable, universities can boost capacity to accommodate increases in traffic at these times, and prevent portal crashes.
Higher Cost Savings And Greater Security
Given the nature of the Nigerian market for educational services, institutions of higher learning in the country are likely to appreciate offers that reduce their running expenses.
Virtual servers avail them of this possibility. As has already been noted, it’s much easier to scale up virtual server capacity than it is to add more physical servers. The organizations that use it can request a ramp up or scale down of capacity, to fit with current demand. This way, they only pay for the resources they utilize.
Security is a big concern as well. Polytechnics and universities hold a vast trove of staff and student information. Unless these systems holding this information are protected, they become open targets for cybercriminals. Thankfully, IaaS providers take care of a lot of this with endpoint protection. This typically forms part of their agreement with the client organization (in this case, education institutions).
These institutions still have a stake in shoring up their defenses. They can do this by limiting access with passwords and other means of authentication, monitoring traffic for potential DDoS attacks, installing and updating malware protection, and performing regular data backups.
vServer: A Private Virtual Server for Organizations Seeking Flexibility
If you are a university or polytechnic that maintains a large and growing database, you need a Virtual Private Server (VPS) that’s secure and easily scalable.
That’s what Layer3 offers with its vServer solution. It’s designed for organizations that want a direct say in the management of their network resources. Unlike the limited scope available from hosting companies, vServer gives its user institutions greater control of their websites and databases.
What’s more, vServer comes with features and add-ons like a web hosting control panel, Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), and vulnerability detection. Layer3 also has a straightforward customer onboarding process and provides round-the-clock support for clients. There are no setup fees and no vendor lock-ins.
The costs involved are within reach as well. And because Layer3 operates within Nigeria, clients don’t have to pay for its services in foreign currency. It saves them the difficulties associated with fluctuating exchange rates.
If you would like to find out more about the virtual server solution from Layer3, you can click here to request a free demo.
National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) of Nigeria has launched a new digital identity verification tool called the NIN Authentication (NINAuth) application.
The initiative, which forms part of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, aims to strengthen the country’s national digital identity management framework.
The launch builds upon Nigeria’s comprehensive unified digital identity system that has been transforming access to financial services and government programs.
The NINAuth application introduces several key features focused on data security and privacy.
The platform requires explicit user consent before sharing identity information for Know Your Customer (KYC) processes, giving individuals greater control over their personal data.
The system provides seamless access to various government services, including SIM card registration, immigration applications, passport processing, tax filings, and financial transactions.
The development follows significant investment in Nigeria’s digital identity infrastructure, including a $45.5 million support from the World Bank as part of the Digital Identification for Development (ID4D) project.
As the official service for integration with NIMC’s backend infrastructure, NINAuth enables secure verification processes across ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs).
The application is available for download on both the Google Play Store and Apple iOS App Store for users of the National Identification Number (NIN).
The rollout represents a significant milestone in Nigeria’s ongoing efforts to digitize government services and strengthen identity verification processes.
“NINAuth is a cutting-edge suite of services including web, API, and mobile verification designed to enhance data security, protect privacy, and simplify access to government services,” said Dr. Kayode Adegoke, Head of Corporate Communications at NIMC.
“The platform introduces a robust layer of protection, empowering individuals with greater control over their personal information.”
The implementation supports the objectives of the recently established Nigeria Digital Identification for Development Project Ecosystem Steering Committee, which oversees the country’s digital identity initiatives.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the launch of the NINAuth app and directed its use for verification and authentication across all MDAs.
The application provides a secure single sign-on solution for accessing government services and social protection programs while maintaining strict data privacy controls.
The centralized approach to digital identity management represents a significant step forward in Nigeria’s digital transformation journey and its commitment to modernizing government services.
Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) has set in motion a machinery to checkmate the booming copyright piracy market in the country.
Copyright piracy is said to cost Nigeria an annual loss estimated at billions of naira.
Despite the absence of a coordinated or official statistics to gauge the quantum of loss, John Asein, director general, NCC, said as far back as 2019, Nigeria lost N918 trillion ($3 billion) annually to digital piracy.
The financial damages severely impact local businesses and innovation efforts.
The commission, in collaboration with the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), has started a project to develop strategies and tools to address the menace.
Speaking at a stakeholders’ meeting on the WIPO project to address online copyright piracy in Nigeria, Asein said digital technologies have unlocked tremendous opportunities for the creative and innovation sectors.
The NCC boss said technology also poses serious challenges, including online piracy, which he said is growing rapidly.
He said: “Pirate sites continue to emerge rapidly, with statistics indicating a 6.7 per cent increase in user visits. A significant percentage of these users are students aged between 18 and 24, with social media and messaging platforms becoming major gateways for accessing pirated content.”
He added: “No industry is immune. The most affected sectors include television (43.6 per cent), publishing (27.5 per cent), film (12.9 per cent), music (7.0 per cent), and software (6.2 per cent).
“Far beyond mere statistics, the victims are no longer only foreign right owners. Many Nigerians in these sectors have also been bruised and their creative enterprises ruined.”
Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) has signed an international mail partnership with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines for improved delivery access to over 200 countries without middlemen.
Tolani Odeyemi, postmaster-general and chief executive officer of NIPOST, described the deal as a “major milestone” for the country’s logistics and postal sector.
In a statement on X on Monday, Odeyemi explained that the new agreement marks NIPOST’s first direct international airline partnership for several years.
“For a long time, NIPOST operated without any direct partnerships with international airlines, relying heavily on multiple third-party handlers,” the Postmaster-General stated. This often resulted in delays, higher costs, and uncertainty around the delivery of packages.”
She explained that under the new arrangement, KLM will directly handle all outbound international mail from Nigeria, eliminating the need for intermediaries.
“This translates to faster and more reliable delivery, reduced risk of loss or damage, lower handling charges, and access to over 200 countries through KLM’s global network,” the Postmaster-General stressed.
According to Odeyemi, NIPOST’s breakthrough came after it began settling long-standing debts owed to international carriers, a step she said was key to “rebuilding global trust” in Nigeria’s postal system.
She revealed that talks were also ongoing with Ethiopian Airlines to bolster regional and continental logistics, particularly on African and Eastern routes.
“Our goal is clear and unwavering: to connect Nigeria regionally and globally, efficiently, securely, and affordably,” Odeyemi asserted.
The NIPOST CEO described the development as a significant win for Nigerian businesses and small and medium-scale enterprises that rely on international shipping, stating, “You now benefit from quicker, more affordable international shipping, greater peace of mind with improved reliability, and new potential to reach and grow in global markets.”
Odeyemi commended the teams behind the scenes and pledged continued improvements in service delivery, adding that the deal signals a turning point for the agency.
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